Chris Hipkins vows to win election as next New Zealand PM

New Zealand's incoming prime minister Chris Hipkins vowed  to "get things done" and win a looming October general election after being chosen as his party's only candidate to replace Jacinda Ardern.

The 44-year-old red-headed politician emerged as the sole nominee to lead the ruling Labour Party in a meeting of fellow members of parliament, and now faces what is seen as the mere formality of a confirmation by his colleagues.

As leader of the party, he will take over as the country's 41st prime minister following Ardern's shock resignation.

Hipkins praised Ardern as "the leader we needed at the time that we needed it", but agreed that she had been on the receiving end of "absolutely intolerable vitriol".

"I like to think I am pretty decisive and I can get things done," said Hipkins, who became a household name for leading the nation's Covid-19 crackdown for nearly two years.

Ardern said she would step down by February 7 but could do so earlier given that her successor was chosen in barely 48 hours.

Ardern, a global figurehead for progressive politics, stunned New Zealand by announcing her abrupt exit from office, less than three years after securing a second term in a landslide election win.

The 42-year-old -- who steered the country through natural disasters, the Covid pandemic, and its worst-ever terror attack -- said she no longer had "enough in the tank".

Ardern said her decision to step down was "tinged with sadness" but after having made the announcement she had "slept well for the first time in a long time".