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Jacinda Ardern will rule New Zealand for a second term after the Labor Party scored a historic landslide victory in the general election, drawing so many votes that it could become the first party in decades to rule alone.
Ardern’s deft handling of the Covid-19 outbreak and his steadfast belief in science and experts were credited with winning the trust of New Zealanders, who cast the first votes in record numbers, giving his party more votes than any other. election in the last five decades.
With almost 100% of the votes counted, Labor had secured 49%, with the opposition National Party 27%. Labor was expected to win 64 of 120 seats in parliament, and the national 35. It is the best result for the Labor party in 50 years, being hailed as “extraordinary” by former Labor Prime Minister Helen Clark, and ” mind-blowing ”by the followers.
Opposition leader Judith Collins congratulated Ardern on the “outstanding result” Saturday night, but declined to answer questions from reporters about whether she would remain leader.
Speaking to 1,000 people in Auckland City Council, Ardern thanked the nation for the strong mandate. He said the elections “do not have to be divisive” and vowed to rule with cooperation and positivity, adding that New Zealand could set an example by showing that the elections need not mean that people “tear each other apart.”
She said: “We live in an increasingly polarized world, a place where more and more people have lost the ability to see the point of view of others. I hope that in these elections New Zealand has shown that this is not who we are. That as a nation we can listen and debate. After all, we are too young to lose sight of other people’s perspective. Elections are not always good for bringing people together. But they also don’t need to separate each other.
“In times of crisis, I think New Zealand has shown it. This has not been an ordinary election and it is not an ordinary time. It’s been full of uncertainty and anxiety, and we set out to be an antidote to that. “
The words were interpreted as a veiled allusion to the divisive US elections, which will take place in two weeks.
Ardern had tears in her eyes as she took the podium and seemed touched by the show of support for her party and leadership. Earlier this week, she had said that she would leave politics if she was not re-elected.
The first 30 seconds of Ardern’s speech were in fluent Maori, the language of the indigenous peoples of New Zealand.
To the applause, Ardern said: “I cannot imagine a town where I would feel more privileged to work on his behalf, work alongside him and be prime minister. Tonight’s result gives Labor a very strong and very clear mandate. “
If he chooses, Labor will not have to rely on a minor party to form a government.
This would make the Ardern government in 2020 the first since 1996 to rule alone, giving it a seismic advantage to pass progressive policies on issues like climate change, affordable housing and child poverty.
In his first term as leader, Ardern fought to enact the transformative change he had promised voters. It is understood that it was hampered by its necessary coalition agreement with NZ First, a right-leaning socially conservative minority party.
Now they have been decisively ousted from the government, without reaching the 5% threshold.
Ardern has yet to decide whether to invite the Green Party to the government; But even without them, the new government will be significantly more progressive and left-leaning than its previous iteration.
The vote had turned into a referendum on Ardern’s leadership since 2017, when she went from being a relatively unknown opposition MP to prime minister in less than three months.
The results suggested that New Zealanders had rewarded her for her skillful handling of the pandemic, which has so far saved the country from the worst of Covid-19, although it is now in a recession.
Ardern’s decision to close the borders and enforce a nationwide lockdown meant that fewer than 2,000 people were infected with coronavirus and 25 people died.
A record number of voters – nearly 2 million – cast their votes in advance, representing nearly half of the roughly 3.5 million New Zealanders on the electoral rolls.
Collins, the third leader this year of a national party beset by infighting and disunity, often preferred to criticize Ardern’s handling of the pandemic or economic recovery plans, rather than promoting his own policies.
Ardern, who has become world famous as a progressive leader, emphasized kindness and cooperation during her first term, telling voters that she needed a second term to fulfill her promises of transformative change.
During his first term, he banned future oil and gas exploration, increased paid parental leave, raised the minimum wage and increased benefits for the most disadvantaged New Zealanders.
But it failed to deliver on some of its key promises. She abandoned the KiwiBuild affordable housing scheme (fewer than 500 houses were built of the original 100,000 pledged), eliminated a proposed capital gains tax, and made minimal progress on child poverty.
She defended her progressive record on Friday, telling an interviewer that change would not happen overnight.
“I’m not done yet … I’m a bit flattered by the idea that it would solve a decades-long problem in three years, but I can’t,” she told Radio New Zealand of her history of child poverty.
A second term brings with it a host of challenges, with the country facing a recession, poverty and rising profit figures and increasingly common weather-related weather events.
Labor’s ‘dangerous strategy’
Ardern’s popularity was at the forefront of the Labor campaign, with an ad on social media saying that voting for the party would allow New Zealand to “Keep Jacinda” as one of the top 10 reasons to vote for them. Analysts said it was a risky strategy for the party in the long term.
Jennifer Lees-Marshment, a professor of politics at the University of Auckland, said: “He is not trying to win anyone over, so while this seems safe for Labor, it is actually a very dangerous strategy.”
Susan St John, a researcher with the Child Poverty Action Group, said the Ardern government had failed to control excessive wealth to the detriment of the poorest.
“There have been small improvements in low income, but no transformative step change,” said St John. “The government’s promises to prioritize child poverty led to very modest reduction targets that seem less achievable in today’s environments amid the Covid-19 recession.”
Electoral fatigue manifested itself during the long weeks of the campaign, but it was Labor’s promise of “stability,” usually a National Party slogan, that proved decisive after such a difficult year.
Ardern has promised to cut child poverty in half by 2030, tackle the climate crisis and build more state housing. He has also promised to resurrect the economy after a strict seven-week lockdown.
Crushed collins
While Collins, a veteran politician, was a known number, she was also divisive: loved and hated in equal measure. His optimistic energy seemed to wane in the final week of the campaign, as his defeat seemed increasingly certain, and now he will likely face a fight for national leadership.
Collins criticized Ardern for using “silly” language and failing to deliver on his promises of transformative change. He said the prime minister offered “love and hugs” when what the country really needed was an experienced politician and a business hand to get them out of the financial crisis.
But his attacks didn’t seem to resonate with voters.
Political analysts have described the 2020 general election as “strange”, “strange” and “strange”; and said it lacked the usual drama and scandal, as well as much coherence.
Ardern’s popularity at home and abroad has made her the country’s first “famous PM” and, along with her success in Covid-19, many analysts deemed her impossible to beat, saying her appeal as a leader was spreading. beyond politics.
In addition to electing a new government, the ballots asked New Zealanders to decide whether to legalize marijuana and euthanasia. The results of the referendum questions will not be made public until October 30. Polls have suggested that euthanasia will likely become legal, but support for cannabis legalization has cooled.
