A Different Kind of Power: A Memoir

After graduating from high school, Ardern chose to pursue a degree in communications at the nearby University of Waikato, as a compromise between her desire to study the arts and the pressure to prepare for a successful career. During the school holidays, Harry Duynhoven, the Labour Party MP for New Plymouth, recruited her (on her Aunt Marie’s recommendation) to help with his campaign for the 1999 election. Ardern spent several weeks in New Plymouth, calling Labour Party members to recruit volunteers.

She later participated in the campaign, proposing and producing an ad for the local student radio station and joining Marie in door-knocking. Marie believed that it was important to campaign in areas where people needed the most help, so she always chose poorer areas such as the notoriously “rough” Marfell neighborhood, where she had lived two decades earlier. Constituents often sought help at Harry’s office, confirming Ardern’s belief that systemic change was needed to provide proper governmental support.

On election day, Ardern helped at the polling station and cast her first-ever votes for Harry and for the Labour Party. Harry won his seat, the Labour Party won the overall vote, and Labour Leader Helen Clark became the second female prime minister of New Zealand.