A Different Kind of Power: A Memoir

Ardern began promoting her election campaign with vigor, but was outraged when a news anchor took her willingness to discuss her stance on motherhood as an excuse to demand the same of all working women. Her team coined the campaign slogan of, “Let’s do this” (184), and fundraising efforts began in earnest. Despite minor gaffes on Ardern’s part, she achieved unanticipated meteoric success in the polls.

Her maternal grandmother, Margaret, had a stroke and died, but in her last words to Ardern, she told her granddaughter that she was proud of her. Ardern attended the funeral shortly before election night. The Labour Party won enough votes that its coalition with the Green Party put them roughly on par with the National Party. Thus, the New Zealand First Party could choose to form a coalition with either party to determine the winner. After weeks of negotiations, First Party Leader Winston Peters allied with the Labour Party, making Ardern the new prime minister. Shortly before this decision was announced, Ardern discovered that she was pregnant.

Ardern alludes to the grandeur and honor of the formal swearing-in ceremony, but she found that the day went by in a blur. She focuses instead on a phone conversation she had beforehand with veteran journalist John Campbell in her car on the way to Government House. He asked her to provide a final statement on her aims and hopes before she was officially sworn in as prime minister, and after some thought, she declared that above all else she hoped her term would be remembered for “kindness.” She has always found kindness deeply important throughout her life and considers it equally important for the country as a whole.

Ardern began her term as prime minister, attending formal functions and events, all while experiencing near-debilitating morning sickness. She chose to keep her pregnancy secret during this early period and had to use subterfuge to get medical scans and treatment without alerting her security detail or the press. She met with major, world-famous political figures at important international summits, and faced sexism by not being recognized as a head of state, being one of the few female leaders in attendance. During a trip to Vietnam, she was terrified of possibly contracting Zika from mosquito bites because of the disease’s potentially devastating consequences on an unborn child. Shortly before the end of the year, she finally announced her pregnancy to the public via an Instagram post.

Ardern feared that announcing her pregnancy while in office would result in a major backlash, but while some opponents took the opportunity to attack her, she was pleasantly surprised to discover that reactions were overwhelmingly supportive and joyful. She received numerous meaningful gifts from the people of New Zealand, and there was a nationwide movement to knit and donate baby clothes in her honor. She was under significant scrutiny as an expectant mother in a leadership position, and she felt significant pressure to defend women everywhere by proving herself capable despite the challenges of pregnancy.

She invested significant effort in improving relationships between the government and Māori people. For instance, she attended the full five days of celebration surrounding the anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi alongside her deputy. Clarke was hugely supportive in his role as First Man, socializing extensively with the partners of other foreign leaders during international summits. Ardern met the Queen of England and was heartened by her practical advice regarding raising children in the public eye. Ardern continued to implement policies that had been years in the making and addressed major issues such as the outbreak of the M. Bovis disease on New Zealand farms.

Ardern gave birth to a daughter, whom she and Clarke named Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayforn. Ardern introduced her to the press three days after giving birth, and took six weeks of maternity leave to recover and bond with her daughter, leaving Winston Peters in charge of the government for the duration. Ardern had unanticipated difficulty with breastfeeding, found physical recovery grueling, and found it challenging to sleep. Clarke was a stay-at-home father, and he and Ardern’s family, particularly her mother, provided invaluable support.

A month after Ardern returned to work, she took her first overseas trip without Neve and had to compartmentalize to cope effectively with the stress of separation. That September, she attended a summit of the UN General Assembly in New York to speak on the climate crisis affecting the Pacific Islands. Clarke and Neve accompanied her, and Neve was the first baby ever present at the floor of the General Assembly. Difficulties getting Neve to latch on during this trip, despite all the support available, meant that Ardern was forced to give up breastfeeding. As the year ended, both she and Clarke hoped that the next year would be easier.