Ardern's exit after "unprecedented" threats shows toll of burnout for women leaders

Ardern's exit after "unprecedented" threats shows toll of burnout for women leaders

https://www.axios.com/2023/01/19/jacinda-ardern-politics-women-threats-government

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New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern shocked many when she announced her impending resignation, citing burnout, but some of the burdens she has faced are familiar to women leaders around the world.

The big picture: The vitriol aimed at Ardern during her tenure reflects wider trends that directly impact many women in politics.

* Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark issued a statement Thursday praising the "extraordinary job" Ardern has done, but noted that, "Jacinda has faced a level of hatred and vitriol which in my experience is unprecedented in our country."

* When she was elected in 2017, Ardern became the world's youngest woman head of government and was only the second to give birth while in office, after Pakistan's Benazir Bhutto in 1990.

"When women stand up to claim their space, in politics and public life, there is an ensuing backlash. This is a global phenomenon. It happens pretty much everywhere," Sandra Pepera, director of the National Democratic Institute's Gender, Women

* Ardern had handled a series of crises while being trolled and abused online, she said. "It is a heavy toll on political women, and they are having to develop wells of resilience, far above the norm," Pepera said.

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