New Zealand ex-Prime Minster Jacinda Ardern weds longtime partner

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern walks back to her baby Neve and partner Clarke Gayford, after speaking at the Nelson Mandela Peace Summit during the 73rd United Nations General Assembly in New York City, New York, U.S., September 24, 2018. Picture taken September 24, 2018. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand's former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern married her longtime partner Clarke Gayford in a private ceremony on Saturday, finally tying the knot after cancelling ceremonies during strict COVID-19 controls she imposed on the country.

Ardern, 43, and Gayford, 47, got engaged in May 2019 and were meant to be married in early 2022, but the ceremony was cancelled due to her “go hard, go early” approach to the pandemic, which allowed New Zealand to keep deaths from the virus low.