During Covid-19

New Zealand and the Changing Attitudes to Female Leaders During Covid-19

written by Maisie Allen

Photo: Jacinda Arden, Getty Images, 2020.

Amidst the turbulence of the upcoming United States Presidential election and its monopolisation of the mediatic space, another election is taking place this autumn. In October, the citizens of New Zealand will head to the ballot boxes. At the moment, Prime Minister and leader of the New Zealand Labour Party Jacinda Ardern is leading a minority coalition government with the leader of the anti-immigration party New Zealand First, Winston Peters, as her deputy. Nevertheless, many pollsters have Ardern and the New Zealand Labour Party predicted to make significant gains in October with the potential to lead a majority government. This is coming hot on the heels of global praise for Ardern’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis, alongside other female leaders, paving the way for a new generation of politicians who are not afraid to embrace a form of leadership that distances itself from the traditionally male-dominated approaches. Ardern’s leadership saw New Zealand become one of the first countries to reach a 100-day milestone without a recorded transmission of Covid-19 before a spike of 4 new cases in Auckland sent the entire city into full lockdown.

However, the praise does not stop there. Over the past three years, Ardern has managed to pass legislation regarding paid leave for domestic abuse survivors, confirmed child poverty reduction targets, banned housing sales for foreign visitors, among other developments in health and education. Subsequently, Peters and his New Zealand First party look decidedly anxious about October’s election, even attempting to pressure Ardern into delaying it further until November. Since she took office in 2017, she has been lauded by the global media as a new kind of leader, namely more empathetic and effective in her approach. The Covid-19 crisis has made this even more evident. Her daily briefings for the New Zealand public encouraged them to ‘be kind’, while at the same time emphasising the government’s zero-tolerance approach for those who flouted the lockdown rules. This included demoting her own Health Minister after he made an unnecessary drive to the beach with his family during the lockdown period, with Ardern stating that New Zealand ‘deserved better’ .

One aspect of the current media discourse which cannot be ignored is that of gender. In the recent news coverage of political leadership and the results of various approaches to the Covid-19 pandemic, female leaders and the countries they lead are consistently viewed as the most successful. Ardern is no exception. When New Zealand began their lockdown on March 25th, she addressed the country from a Facebook Live session, moving away from the formalities of national broadcast television addresses, seen in several other countries. By openly sharing her feelings about the country’s lockdown and reassuring its citizens, she portrayed herself as an accessible yet firm leader. Just like Ardern, other female leaders, including Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, have surpassed expectations when it comes to dealing with the pandemic. Ing-wen’s leadership saw Taiwan managing to control the virus without the need for a national lockdown, mainly by relying on contact tracing and isolation measures instead. Arguably, the pandemic could serve as a tipping

point for women in politics across the globe. Covid-19 to these services even with the threat of an impending recession. has demonstrated that often overtly masculine traits, The looming global recession in the wake of Covid-19 is such as individualism and aggression, which political just another symptom of the breaking relationship bediscourses have often tended to associate with strong tween capitalism and government. Likely, mass redunleadership, have failed to effectively respond to the cri- dancies and countrywide reductions in product output sis we are currently facing. mean that empathetic and decisive leadership will be essential for any country to survive this pandemic. In the UK, this included an emphasis on a Darwin-Esque New Zealand seems certain to follow this path in the ‘herd immunity’ strategy, rather than a strict lockdown wake of the October election, suggesting that female for all citizens, which many felt resulted in hundreds of leadership in the Covid-19 crisis has proved impactful, unnecessary deaths. In the years to come, with the af- bringing about a change in what potential voters look termath of Covid-19 still likely to be felt amongst the for in a leader. Ardern spent time with a diverse range younger generations, this could be the start of a new of experts to create the New Zealand government’s wave of female leaders who are not slated for display- Covid-19 strategy, which proved to be somewhat risking traits associated with femininity but are embraced. averse, despite the fact it meant shutting down the As such, in New Zealand, it is unsurprising that Peters’ New Zealand economy earlier than many expected. future within the government looks decidedly uncer- Female leaders are sometimes deemed to be more tain. This is especially because his party’s anti-immigra- cautious than their male counterparts. They also tend tion main talking point is at odds to be judged more harshly in the eyes with the need for global cohesion and co-operation in the “displaying traits of the public given that our very notion of leadership is inherently linked with fight against the Covid-19 pan- associated with femi- masculine traits. This is an entrenched demic. Additionally, his overtly patriarchal trope in itself, which excritical and often brash nature is ninity but are plains the heedful strategies of many something which could alienate many members of the public, embraced” women leaders worldwide. many of which will currently be Ardern has followed a similar cautionlooking for a more empathetic ary tale in preparation of the 2020 leader for their country, highlighted in Ardern’s current general election, presenting herself as someone who approval ratings. can remain calm through crises, whilst ensuring that the citizens of New Zealand feel adequately protected However, one thing that Ardern and Tsai Ing-wen have and represented by their government. Even before the in common besides their gender, is their political lean- Covid-19 pandemic began, Ardern led New Zealand ings. Many of the leaders deemed to be failures when into becoming one of the first countries to design their dealing with Covid-19, like the UK’s Prime Minister Bo- budget around citizens’ wellbeing rather than solely ris Johnson or the US President Donald Trump, are of- GDP, investing millions into child poverty reduction ten on the conservative right of the political spectrum, and mental health facilities. Whilst critics have claimed meaning their individualist approach to health and that these budgets overreach those of a so-called typsocial care and prioritisation of the free market have ical Western liberal democracy, Ardern is willing to put seen incredibly high death tolls across their respective the safety of New Zealand and its citizens as her main countries. Arguably then, more ideologically left-lean- manifesto priority. ing politicians like Ardern could be paving the way for As such, Ardern’s leadership and management of the a newer approach to politics and the role of the state in New Zealand Labour Party, alongside her coalition govcitizens’ lives. Ardern, who has been recorded as hav- ernment with Peters, look set to help change perceping socialist leanings, has been implementing such an tions of what a strong leader looks like. Women have agenda in her recovery plan for New Zealand. slowly been making their way to the forefront of global It includes commitments to spend more on public ser- nally be the tipping point for a new era of female leadvices so that New Zealanders are granted equal access ership. political leadership for decades, but Covid-19 could fi-

North America

edited by Rebecca Visser