Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated his New Zealand counterpart Jacinda Ardern on Sunday for securing a second term in office. Prime Minister Modi said he looked forward to working together to take the bilateral relationship to a higher level.
“My sincere congratulations to New Zealand PM @jacindaardern for his resounding victory. Let us look back at our last meeting a year ago and we look forward to working together to take the India-New Zealand relationship to a higher level, “Prime Minister Modi said on Twitter.
Ardern won a second term on Saturday in a landslide victory of historic proportions.
Ardern’s liberal Labor Party got 49 percent of the vote, crushing the conservative National Party, which got 27 percent. Ardern said the margin of victory exceeded his expectations.
The Labor Party will now win an absolute majority in Parliament, the first time a party has done so since New Zealand implemented a proportional voting system 24 years ago. Usually the parties have formed alliances to govern, but this time Labor can do it alone.
A day after winning the second term, Ardern said Sunday that he sees the election result as endorsement of his government’s efforts to eradicate the coronavirus and restart the economy.
Speaking at a cafe near his home in Auckland, Ardern said he hopes to form a new government within three weeks and prioritize work on responding to the virus.
“We are moving very fast with the work that we have to do as a new team,” Ardern said.
Ardern’s popularity soared earlier this year after he led a successful effort to stop the spread of the virus by implementing a strict lockdown in late March. New Zealand has had fewer than 2,000 cases of the virus, including 25 deaths.
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