Chris Hipkins will be New Zealand’s next prime minister after a formal vote endorsed him as Jacinda Ardern’s successor after her shock resignation on Thursday.
New Zealand will also swear in its first ever Pasifika deputy prime minister, with social development minister Carmel Sepuloni, who is of Tongan descent, to take the role.
Hipkins has been set to take the prime ministership since Saturday morning, when he was the sole candidate nominated by caucus members to take Ardern’s place. Senior MPs had pushed for a consensus nominee, hoping for a swift, decisive transition without infighting. Sunday’s vote finalised the process of Hipkins’ selection.
Sepuloni, whom Hipkins has announced as his deputy, will be New Zealand’s first Pasifika deputy prime minister. The minister for social development, arts, culture and heritage is considered a reliable performer in government, and has had a close relationship with Hipkins, working alongside him as a whip in parliament, and collaborating closely on programmes for education and youth crime.
She is also Auckland-based, bringing representation of a city home to almost a third of New Zealand’s total population, an attribute that is considered crucial to the leadership teams of New Zealand’s major parties.
Sepuloni entered parliament in 2008, becoming New Zealand’s first Tongan MP.
More to come
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