Jacinda Ardern says upcoming memoir aimed at ‘anyone who has ever doubted themselves’

Former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has announced her memoir – billed as a “deeply personal” book chronicling her leadership – will be released in June.

Ardern hoped her memoir would strike a chord with those who aspire to lead. “For anyone who has ever doubted themselves, I really hope there is something in it for them,” she said.

“I have written about things that I haven’t shared before, but I’ve also tried to share how it feels to lead, especially if you’re surprised to find yourself in leadership,” said Ardern, likely referring to when she abruptly became leader of the Labour party in 2017, just six weeks out from an election her party was widely expected to lose. On a wave of popularity dubbed “Jacindamania”, Ardern led the party to victory.

Towards the end of her time in office, Ardern’s legacy at home became more complicated, and she faced criticism over her government’s failure to make headway on its promises to fix the housing crisis and meaningfully reduce emissions. As the pandemic wore on, a small but vocal fringe of anti-vaccine and anti-mandate groups emerged, leading to a violent protest on parliament’s lawns and threatening rhetoric directed at Ardern.

Publisher Crown said A Different Kind of Power tells the story of how “a Mormon girl plagued by self-doubt made political history and changed our assumptions of what a global leader can be”.

In 2017, Ardern became the world’s youngest serving female leader, aged 37, and went on to make history as the second woman to give birth while holding elected office.

Over the next six years, her leadership was defined by a series of national and international crises including the Christchurch attack and Covid pandemic and her responses in those pressured moments, which repeatedly emphasised the values of empathy, humanity and kindness. At a time when major western powers were lurching to the right, Ardern’s brand of politics catapulted her into a global icon of the left.

In Tuesday’s announcement, she said: “I also wanted to share why I believe in empathetic leadership, and that kindness isn’t just something we should teach our kids, there’s a place for it in politics too. Especially in these times.”

Ardern shocked New Zealanders in January 2023 when she said she was stepping down because she no longer had “enough in the tank”. The book will, for the first time, reveal the full details of her decision.

Since leaving office, Ardern has taken up dual fellowship roles at Harvard University, continued her work on the Christchurch Call – a project she established to combat online extremism, following the Christchurch mosque shootings - and joined the board of trustees of Prince William’s Earthshot prize.

In 2023, Ardern received one of New Zealand’s highest honours, becoming a Dame Grand Companion.