Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern, born 26 July 1980, is a New Zealand politician who has served as the 40th Prime Minister of New Zealand since 26 October 2017 and as Leader of the Labour Party since 1 August 2017. She has been the Member of Parliament for the Mount Albert electorate since 8 March 2017 and was first elected to parliament as a list MP in the 2008 general election.
After graduating from the University of Waikato in 2001, Ardern worked as a researcher for Prime Minister Helen Clark and later as a policy advisor to British Prime Minister Tony Blair. She was elected President of the International Union of Socialist Youth in 2008. Ardern served as a list MP for nearly ten years before winning the Mount Albert electorate in a 2017 by-election. She became Deputy Leader of the Labour Party in March 2017 and Leader in August 2017 following Andrew Little's resignation. In the September 2017 general election, Labour won 46 seats, and after coalition negotiations, New Zealand First formed a minority government with Labour supported by the Greens, making Ardern Prime Minister. She identifies as a social democrat and progressive and was the world's youngest female head of government at age 37.
New Zealand
