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Helen Clark on Jacinda Ardern’s rise: ‘She’s had an amazing start’

Our former PM gets candid about the New Zealand election and Labour's new leader.
Helen ClarkGetty

Since leaving Parliament, ex-prime minister Helen Clark has made a point of not interfering in Kiwi politics, insisting, “They don’t need me chirping from the sidelines.”

However, in her latest chat with Woman’s Day, the former head of the United Nations Development Programme can’t hide her excitement over the Labour Party’s new leader, Jacinda Ardern.

“I think she’s had an amazing start,” Helen, 67, confesses in our latest issue. “The campaign was shaping up to be very, very boring, but it’s galvanised it. It’s put some life into it and got people talking about it, and that’s got to be good for democracy.”

Speaking to Woman’s Day to promote filmmaker Gaylene Preston’s new documentary My Year with Helen – which follows her unsuccessful campaign for UN Secretary-General – the social-media star also speaks about her love of Snapchat and emojis, as well as the next chapter of her career and the new frontier for feminism.

For the full story, grab your copy of this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale now.

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