New Zealand's 41st prime minister

Chris Hipkins was sworn in Wednesday as New Zealand's 41st prime minister, following the unexpected resignation last week of Jacinda Ardern. Hipkins, 44, has promised a back-to-basics approach focusing on the economy and what he described as the “pandemic of inflation.”

He will have less than nine months before contesting a tough general election. “This is the biggest privilege and responsibility of my life,” Hipkins said. Ardern on Tuesday made her final public appearance as prime minister, saying the thing she would miss most was the people because they had been the “joy of the job.”