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Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon says that she plans to step down after more than eight years in office, amid criticism of her drive to expand transgender rights and her strategy for achieving independence from the United Kingdom.

Sturgeon made the announcement during a news conference today at her official residence in Edinburgh, Bute House, saying the decision wasn\u2019t a response to the \u201clatest period of pressure.\u201d But she added that part of serving well was knowing when to make way for someone else.

\u201cIn my head and in my heart I know that time is now,\u201d she said.

\u201cThat it\u2019s right for me, for my party and my country.\u201d

Sturgeon, 52, has led Scotland since 2014, when Scots narrowly voted to remain part of the United Kingdom. While the referendum was billed as a once-in-a-generation decision on independence, Sturgeon and her Scottish National Party have pushed for a new vote, arguing that Britain\u2019s departure from the European Union had changed the ground rules. The UK government has refused to allow a second referendum.

The first female leader of Scotland\u2019s devolved government, Sturgeon said she planned to remain in office until the SNP elects a new leader. Scotland is part of the UK but, like Wales and Northern Ireland, has its own semi-autonomous government with broad powers over areas including health care.

Sturgeon\u2019s announcement caught political observers by surprise amid her staunch support for both independence and legislation that would make it easier for people in Scotland to legally change genders.

\u201cThis is as sudden as Jacinda Ardern \u2026 Geez,\u201d tweeted SNP lawmaker Angus MacNeil, referring to the resignation last month of New Zealand\u2019s prime minister.

Sturgeon has come under pressure in recent weeks after she pushed her gender recognition bill through the Scottish parliament over the objections of some members of her own party. That raised concerns that Sturgeon\u2019s position on transgender rights could undermine support for independence, the SNP\u2019s overarching goal.

Joanna Cherry, an SNP member of Parliament, said the resignation provided an opportunity for the party.

\u201cWe must restore the SNP\u2019s tradition of internal party democracy, open respectful debate and intellectual rigour and we must also put the welfare of everyone living in Scotland back at the heart of our endeavours,\u201d Cherry said on Twitter.

Sturgeon said she had been \u201cwrestling\u201d with whether it was time step down for a number of weeks. She said she wasn\u2019t resigning because of recent criticism, though she acknowledged that the \u201cphysical and mental impact\u201d of the job had taken their toll.

Sturgeon led Scotland through the coronavirus pandemic and guided her party during three UK-wide elections and two Scottish elections.

\u201cIf the question is, can I battle on for another few months, then the answer is yes, of course I can,\u201d she said. \u201cBut if the question is, can I give this job everything it demands and deserves for another year, let alone for the remainder of this parliamentary term, give it every ounce of energy that it needs in the way that I have strived to do every day for the last eight years, the answer honestly is different.\u201d

For the past few months, much of that energy has been focused on a renewed drive for independence and the gender recognition bill, which would allow people aged 16 or older in Scotland to change the gender designations on identity documents by self-declaration, removing the need for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria.

Hailed as a landmark by transgender rights activists, the legislation faced opposition from some SNP members who said it ignored the need to protect single-sex spaces for women, such as domestic violence shelters and rape crisis centres.

Criticism of the bill increased after reports that a convicted rapist was being held in a women\u2019s prison in Scotland while transitioning. The inmate was transferred to a men\u2019s prison after being assessed by prison authorities.

While the Scottish parliament approved the legislation, it has been blocked by the British government because it would present problems for authorities in other parts of the UK, where a medical diagnosis is needed before individuals can transition for legal purposes.

Sturgeon had vowed to take the British government to court, arguing that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak\u2019s administration had made a \u201cprofound mistake\u201d by vetoing the legislation.

Sturgeon also came under fire for saying she would make the next Scottish parliament election a de facto referendum on independence after the government in Westminster refused to sanction a new vote on Scotland\u2019s links to the U.K.

The party is set to hold a conference on the strategy next month, with some members saying it won\u2019t work and others criticizing Sturgeon for waiting too long to press ahead with independence.

- Danica Kirka, AP

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