Helen Clark

The Rt. Hon. Helen Clark
The Rt. Hon. Helen Clark in 1999
37th Prime Minister of New Zealand
In office 5 December 1999 – 19 November 2008
Deputy	Jim Anderton (1999 – 2002) Michael Cullen (2002 – 2008)
Preceded by	Jenny Shipley
Succeeded by	John Key
Constituency	Mount Albert, since 1981
27th Leader of the Opposition
In office 1 December 1993 – 5 December 1999
Preceded by	Mike Moore
Succeeded by	Jenny Shipley
11th Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand
In office 8 August 1989 – 2 November 1990
Prime Minister	Geoffrey Palmer (1989 – 1990) Mike Moore (1990)
Preceded by	Geoffrey Palmer
Succeeded by	Don McKinnon
Personal details
Born	(1950-02-26) 26 February 1950 Hamilton, New Zealand
Political party	Labour
Spouse(s)	Peter Davis (m. 1981)
Profession	Lecturer

Helen Elizabeth Clark (born 26 February 1950) was the Prime Minister of New Zealand from December 1999 to November 2008. She is was later the head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) from 2009 to 2017. In 2006, she was ranked by Forbes magazine as the 20th most powerful woman in the world.

Clark is a member of the of Global Commission for the Economy and Climate.

Early life

Clark grew up the eldest of four daughters from a Waikato farming family. Her mother, Margaret, worked as a primary school teacher and her father, George, was a farmer who supported the National Party during the 1981 election.

Clark studied at the University of Auckland, where she graduated with a MA (Honours) in 1974. Her thesis research focused on rural political behavior and representation.