No political capital left

One theory about Jacinda Ardern’s early retirement is that she couldn’t get the Maori caucus to moderate their demands, realised she couldn’t win the election if she gave in to them so gave up.

Or was it this:

Was Ardern’s position left untenable due to a failed cabinet reshuffle that was rebuffed by her colleagues? And what will the change of leader mean for the flagship policies which Labour decides to continue to support in 2023?

— Thomas Cranmer (@CranmerWrites) January 19, 2023

 

The new leader needs support of  2/3 of the whole caucus or the leadership will go out to the wider party.

Whether or not Ardern lost the battle with the Maori caucus, its members will have a big say in the vote for the party’s next leader and Prime Minister.

What policy promises will they extract as a price for their support and what will that do for the political capital of the new leader and the party as a whole?