Ardern kept a low public profile yesterday after revealing she was walking away from the top job. Today she spoke to reporters gathered at Hawke’s Bay airport in Napier, where the Labour caucus had gathered for a retreat.
Asked how she was feeling, Ardern said she “slept well for the first time in a long time”.
“But still a range of emotions, I of course feel sad, but also I do have a sense of relief,” she said.
In a short stand-up, Ardern said she felt “deeply humbled” by the response she’d received to her call to step down. She had seen excerpts of all the tributes and intended to catch up on them when she had the time.
“To have those messages of gratitude has been really moving for me and for my family.”
Ardern planned to go home for a few days and get ready for time in Wellington.
”The focus for the team is selecting a new leader of the Labour Party and therefore a new Prime Minister for New Zealand. It’s an incredibly important decision and the team is very focused on it.”
Ardern said she had not considered calling a snap election while considering her future.
She said the normal practice when a Prime Minister decided to step down was to have a transition.
”Elections are incredibly disruptive. There was no need for one in this case,” she said.
Asked if candidates should tell the public if they wanted the top job, Ardern said the first thing they need to do was to determine that for themselves.
”This process is so condensed that it will move quickly ... there will be a candidate and then voting on that candidate.”
“Everything I’ve seen from the caucus [is that] caucus are very determined to make that decision on Sunday and get on with the job,” she said.
Asked about the misogyny many commentators say she had faced, Ardern told reporters that played no role in her decision to stand down.
She also confirmed said she had spoken with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese: ”He’s become a friend and I respect him greatly. So I sent him a message. We had a quick conversation afterwards yesterday and he only had words of kindness."
