Nicola Sturgeon has decided to resign as Scotland's longest-serving First Minister.
"Since my very first moments in the job, I have believed that part of serving well would be to know almost instinctively when the time is right to make way for someone else," she said.
"In my head and in my heart, I know the time is now that it is right for me, for my party and for the country. And so today I am announcing my intention to step down as First Minister and leader of my party."
Sturgeon insists her resignation has nothing to do with the recent row over promoting transgender rights.
"This decision is not a reaction to short-term pressures. Of course, there are difficult issues confronting the government just now, but when is that ever not the case," she added.
52-year old Sturgeon is the longest-serving and the first female leader of Scotland.
She replaced her predecessor, Alex Salmond, who quit in 2014 after the pro-independence campaign loss.
She led the Scottish Independence Party, or SNP, through massive election victories.
She was also credited with her government's calm response to the pandemic.
But her government repeatedly clashed with Westminster over issues like transgender rights and independence.
The British government insisted expanding transgender rights would pose problems for authorities over medical diagnoses.
She also came under fire for attempting to make the next Scottish parliamentary election a second vote on independence -- blocked by Westminster.
Reaction among voters was mixed.
One constituent argued, "NHS is a mess, schools, education."
Another admitted, "I think she did all right, through COVID, I think she did the best. But it just feels like that was our peak and it all just kind of went downhill from there."
Sturgeon has vowed to stay until a new leader is elected.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak thanked Sturgeon for doing an outstanding job.
"Let me first start by paying tribute to Nicola Sturgeon for her longstanding public serice, and I wish her well in the future," he said, "Obviously, Nicola and I didn't agree on everything... I look forward to working with whoever the new first minister is to continue working constructively to deliver for the people of Scotland."
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