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New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is up for re-election. Image: keystone
New Zealand chooses: anti-Trump and his “team of five million”
The Prime Minister of New Zealand made himself known around the world through a dark day in the country in 2019. Jacinda Ardern, also known as “Anti-Trump,” is now running for re-election.
On that day in March 2019, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern had a near perfect image: a professional and private, happy and successful woman under 40 who succeeds at just about anything.
New leader of the Labor Party in the summer of 2017, immediately after a completely surprising electoral victory of the opposition. Soon after, she also gave birth to a son as the first acting head of government in decades. His name was hardly known internationally; after all, the island he ruled is quite far away for most people.
Then a mass murderer attacks. A right-wing extremist from Australia shoots 51 Muslims in two mosques in the city of Christchurch. The bloody act horrifies the world. The head of Government has dark circles in the following days, but shows in an exemplary way what compassion, presence and strength mean in times of crisis. She embraces Muslims, talks to the afflicted, gives sensitive speeches, hits the right note. What so many politicians in the world seem to be losing, she has. That finds praise and makes the girl famous in one go.
At the same time, it also leads to a tightening of gun laws. Semi-automatic weapons, like the ones the killer used, are now banned in New Zealand.
The prime minister responded well to the Christchurch attack. Image: keystone
Crown only a year later. The government reacts quickly, orders one of the strictest curfews in the world and succeeds: so far New Zealand has weathered the crisis extremely lightly, recently even declaring the virus to be defeated for the second time. The good news came just in time for Ardern: New Zealanders will vote on Saturday. The 40-year-old, also known as “anti-Trump,” is awaiting a second term.
The crown toll is truly remarkable – only around two dozen people died in connection with Covid-19 in neighboring Australia. In June, the country declared itself crown-free for the first time and returned to enviable normalcy. A second outbreak in Auckland is also now under control.
Rather than harsh words, Ardern relies on the solidarity and collaboration of his “team of five million,” as people like to call them. “Be strong, be friendly” was his slogan in the fight against the virus. But not everyone feels part of the team. Critics accuse her of not doing enough to address widespread child poverty. According to Unicef, there is hardly any other industrialized country with as many youth suicides as in New Zealand. The Maori, the indigenous people of Aotearoa, as they call the country, are still particularly affected by poverty.
Others visit the Maori. Bild: EPA AAP
It was more of a coincidence that Ardern became prime minister. Because Labor was only the second strongest force in the 2017 elections despite clear victories. The conservative National Party, which had previously been in power for three legislative terms, also did not have enough votes to rule alone. A quirk of the electoral system tipped the balance with the small populist “New Zealand First” party, which was allowed to elect its coalition partner itself, and surprisingly decided in favor of Labor. “We had to choose between a status quo or a change,” said party leader Winston Peters. Third in the league are the Greens.
Since then, Ardern has kept many of his electoral promises, some have not. “Economic growth with a simultaneous deterioration of the social situation is not successful at all. It is a failure, ”he admitted during the campaign. It also wants to be a pioneer in climate protection: By 2035, New Zealand should generate 100 percent of its electricity from renewables, he wrote in a guest article in the Tagesspiegel in 2018. Bottom line: It still has big plans. His slogan in the election campaign: “There is still more to do.” (There is more to do).
But there is also disgust that Ardern’s face so frequently graces the covers of magazines. In late 2019, a 66-year-old bricklayer from the Canterbury area made headlines when he launched a campaign against him. “We want a prime minister, not a model,” he complained.
Also: The economic consequences of the pandemic are dramatic. Ardern’s conservative opponent, Judith Collins, wants to wear this. The 61-year-old, who has already held many ministerial positions, is trying to score with her many years of political experience. “We are approaching the deepest recession in living memory. The Treasury Department has predicted that 100,000 more New Zealanders will lose their jobs, “warned Collins during the campaign, introducing himself as a crisis manager:” We need a government with proven economic competence and credibility, with a Covid recovery plan and the ability to implement this plan “.
The opponent: Judith Collins. Image: keystone
The news portal “Stuff” spoke of a “historic election campaign.” The result will determine “how we can get out of the biggest economic shock in decades.” Only one thing seems certain: it will be a woman who will maneuver New Zealand in the difficult time after the pandemic. (cki / cki / sda / dpa)
