After years of delay, former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has tied the knot

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — After nearly five years of engagement and postponement due to the coronavirus pandemic, New Zealand's former prime minister Jacinda Ardern She married her long-time partner Clarke Gifford in a private ceremony on Saturday.

The couple kept details of the event closely guarded, but the ceremony was reportedly held at a luxury vineyard in scenic Hawke's Bay, 325 kilometers (200 miles) from New Zealand's capital, Wellington.

Only family, close friends and a few of the 43-year-old Ardern's former MP colleagues are believed to have been invited, including Ardern's successor and the former prime minister. Chris Hipkins.

Earlier, police met a small group of protesters who had pasted dozens of anti-vaccination posters on the wall outside the venue. A protester was also seen carrying a sign reading “so we don’t forget the strike orders” on the outskirts of the property.

Ardern and Gifford, 47, reportedly began dating in 2014 and were engaged five years later, but due to the Ardern government's COVID-19 restrictions limiting gatherings to 100 people, the wedding planned for the summer was postponed. Southern Hemisphere 2022.

“That's life,” Ardern said at the time of the decision to cancel the wedding. “I'm no different, dare I say, to thousands of other New Zealanders.”

She was just 37 years old when she became captain in 2017, Ardern quickly became a global icon From the left. She embodied a new style of leadership and was praised around the world for her engagement with the nation The worst mass shooting ever The early stages of the coronavirus pandemic.

In 2018, Ardern became the second elected world leader To give birth while in office. Later that year, she brought her infant daughter to the United Nations General Assembly Hall in New York.

New Zealand, under the Ardern government, had some of the strictest coronavirus mandates in the world, which led to several rallies during her final year as prime minister. It also led to a level of vitriol from some not seen by previous New Zealand leaders.

Ardern shocked New Zealanders in January 2023 when She said she would step down After five and a half years as prime minister, she no longer had “sufficient resources” to do the job in an election year.