New Zealand: Chris Hepkins named next Prime Minister
Chris Hipkins, the former head of the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, will be appointed Prime Minister of New Zealand on Sunday 22 January 2023, following the sudden resignation of Jacinda Ardern.
The sole candidate to succeed him, Chris Hipkins, 44, must be formally appointed on Sunday by the ruling party leadership before he becomes his country’s 41st prime minister.
Labor will meet at 1pm on Sunday to endorse the nomination and confirm Chris Hipkins as party leader.said Duncan Webb, a Labor executive.
Elections are on the horizon
The new prime minister will be responsible for leading his party into the general elections in October, for which he is not the candidate, according to opinion polls.
“I like to think of myself as someone who is determined and can get things done.”He thought he might win the Oct. 14 ballot, he told reporters outside parliament in the capital, Wellington.
Jacinda Ardern, a pioneer of global progressive politics, stunned New Zealand when she announced her sudden removal from power, less than three years after winning a second term in a landslide election victory.
“tough and efficient”
Jacinda Ardern said her decision to step down was “a tinged with sadness” But after the announcement, I did “I slept well for the first time in a long time.”.
Political commentators have condemned inappropriate comments on social networks targeting the former prime minister before her resignation.
Jacinda Ardern suffered from A “Absolutely unbearable vitriol”emphasized his successor, who paid tribute “The leader we needed, when we needed her.”
Chris Hipkins is widely regarded as an experienced politician, with over 14 years in Parliament. Political columnist Josie Pagani described her as a “Delicate, sympathetic, tough and competent.”
“An essential piece of failed government”
For his part, Christopher Luxon, leader of the main opposition party in the country, the center-right National Party, congratulated Chris Hepkins, saying that “A mere change of leadership of the Labor Party (wasn’t) enough for the people of New Zealand.”
“The truth is that he was an essential part of a government that failed to do anything.”he added.
The appointment of Chris Hipkins also ended speculation that Justice Minister Kerry Allan could have become the first Maori to govern New Zealand. And the latter congratulated him, believing that it would be so “An incredibly powerful prime minister.”
Chris Hepkins has been hailed for nearly two years as the minister responsible for combating Covid-19 in a country that closed its borders to stave off the pandemic and reopened them in August 2022.
He admitted last year that people were tired of the tough restrictions against the epidemic, and described closing the borders as a “difficult”.
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