New Zealand\u2019s former minister for COVID-19, Chris Hipkins, has been confirmed as the country\u2019s next prime minister.
\nAccording to international media reports, Hipkins got the unanimous support of legislators from the ruling Labour Party on Sunday after he was the only candidate to replace the charismatic Jacinda Ardern, who shocked the nation last week when she announced she was resigning after more than five years as prime minister.
\nHipkins, 44, will be officially sworn in to his new role on Wednesday.
\nHe will have less than nine months before contesting a tough general election, with opinion polls indicating his party is trailing its conservative opposition.
\n\u201cThis is the biggest privilege and biggest responsibility of my life,\u201d Hipkins said at a news conference announcing his appointment.
\nHipkins immediately acknowledged Ardern\u2019s leadership, who he called one of New Zealand\u2019s greatest prime ministers and an inspiration to women and girls everywhere. \u201cShe gave voice to those often overlooked in times of challenge and purposefully went about doing politics differently,\u201d he said.
\nBut some of the hate Ardern faced during her term is a reminder that \u201cwe\u2019ve got a way to go to ensure women in leadership receive the same respect as their male counterparts\u201d, he added.
\nKnown as \u201cChippy\u201d, Hipkins built a reputation for competence in tackling COVID and was a troubleshooter for Ardern when other cabinet ministers were struggling.
\nFirst elected to parliament in 2008, he became a household name fronting the government\u2019s response to the pandemic. He was appointed health minister in July 2020 before becoming the COVID response minister at the end of the year.
\nHipkins named Carmel Sepuloni as deputy prime minister, New Zealand\u2019s first deputy prime minister of Pacific origin.
\nSepuloni, 46, is of Samoan, Tongan and New Zealand European descent and lives in Auckland. She holds a number of portfolios, including social development and employment as well as arts, culture and heritage.
\nShe said it was \u201cvery hard to fathom that a working-class girl\u201d from a small New Zealand town could end up as deputy prime minister.
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