Changes

== Political career ==

== Political career ==

===Prime Minister and COVID-19 ===

=== Rise to power (2017-2020) ===

In the 2017 New Zealand general election, Ardern's Labour Party came 2nd with 38% of the electorate vote, against election winners the National Party's 44%. However, on 19 October 2017, leader of [[New Zealand First]] Winston Peters agreed to form a coalition with Ardern, making her prime minister.

In the 2017 New Zealand general election, Ardern's Labour Party came 2nd with 38% of the electorate vote, against election winners the National Party's 44%. However, on 19 October 2017, leader of [[New Zealand First]] Winston Peters agreed to form a coalition with Ardern, making her prime minister.

{{See also|Covid lockdown}}

{{See also|Covid lockdown}}

On March 19 2020 Ardern announced the creation of the COVID-19 alert level system which consisted of four alert levels ranging from level 1 with the least restrictions to level 4 with the most restrictions with New Zealand being placed into alert level 2.<ref>https://covid19.govt.nz/prepare-and-stay-safe/iwi-and-communities/covid-downlow/alert-levels-and-what-you-have-to-do/</ref> Only a few days later on March 23, Ardern rapidly moved the country into alert level 4 for over a month in an attempt to "eliminate" the virus.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhLCMHj-GjI</ref> This attempt to "eliminate" the virus was initially successful because after reducing restrictions going down to alert level 3 on April 27, alert level 2 on May 11 and finally alert level 1 on June 8, the country (with a population of 5,000,000 as of 2019<ref>https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/population-of-nz</ref>) had only 1504 reported cases and 27 deaths.<ref>https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/new-zealand/</ref> However, after a year of "zero COVID" on August 18 2021 New Zealand rapidly moved from alert level 1 up to alert level 4 when one man in [[Auckland]], New Zealand's capital city<ref>https://teara.govt.nz/en/zoomify/34159/auckland-new-zealands-second-capital-1842</ref>, got tested positive for COVID-19.<ref>https://www.breitbart.com/news/snap-national-lockdown-in-new-zealand-over-single-virus-case/</ref> This person was infected with the Delta variant of COVID-19 which resulted in New Zealand abandoning its elimination strategy after failing to eradicate the virus from the community because of Delta's increased transmissibility.

On March 19 2020 Ardern announced the creation of the COVID-19 alert level system which consisted of four alert levels ranging from level 1 with the least restrictions to level 4 with the most restrictions with New Zealand being placed into alert level 2.<ref>https://covid19.govt.nz/prepare-and-stay-safe/iwi-and-communities/covid-downlow/alert-levels-and-what-you-have-to-do/</ref> Only a few days later on March 23, Ardern rapidly moved the country into alert level 4 for over a month in an attempt to "eliminate" the virus.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhLCMHj-GjI</ref> This attempt to "eliminate" the virus was initially successful because after reducing restrictions going down to alert level 3 on April 27, alert level 2 on May 11 and finally alert level 1 on June 8, the country (with a population of 5,000,000 as of 2019<ref>https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/population-of-nz</ref>) had only 1504 reported cases and 27 deaths.<ref>https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/new-zealand/</ref> However, after a year of "zero COVID" on August 18 2021 New Zealand rapidly moved from alert level 1 up to alert level 4 when one man in [[Auckland]], New Zealand's capital city<ref>https://teara.govt.nz/en/zoomify/34159/auckland-new-zealands-second-capital-1842</ref>, got tested positive for COVID-19.<ref>https://www.breitbart.com/news/snap-national-lockdown-in-new-zealand-over-single-virus-case/</ref> This person was infected with the Delta variant of COVID-19 which resulted in New Zealand abandoning its elimination strategy after failing to eradicate the virus from the community because of Delta's increased transmissibility.