AARON PATRICK: Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan leaves, claiming she could have stayed

Premier Jacinta Allan vowed to fight for her job. She claimed she would have defeated her challenger and deputy, Ben Carroll.

But the woman who led Victoria for almost three difficult years baulked at one more political fight and resigned on Tuesday morning.

At a press conference where she took no questions, Ms Allan said she decided to step aside for the benefit of the Labor Party, which would have been required to hold a ballot of all members to choose a leader four months before an election polls indicate it may lose.

“I was prepared to put my record and my plan to a ballot of members as our rules allow,” she said.

“I believe I would have won but doing so this close to an election takes up valuable resources including the most important one: time.”

Victoria’s 49th premier and the second woman to hold the position leaves office with the state in poor shape.

Victoria’s economy is weak. The state has more debt than any other. Crime is perceived to be out of control. Reports of rampant corruption on state infrastructure projects have horrified many voters.

While Ms Allan was considered by many of her colleagues to be a friendly and collaborative leader, combative encounters with journalists, years of negative publicity and tough comparisons with predecessor Daniel Andrews made it difficult for her to win over the state.

She leaves office deeply unpopular despite being the second long-serving premier since Steve Bracks, who retired in 2007.

At the press conference, Ms Allan cited the achievements she is proudest of, including opening 121 extra schools and 12 hospitals, the construction of the West Gate Tunnel and the Metro train service in central Melbourne and the removal of 92 train crossings.

She boasted of hiring 17,000 nurses, thousands of teachers and “record pay rises” for both, anti-hate laws and a treaty with Indigenous Victorians.

But it was policies to promote women’s health that she placed the greatest emphasis on.

A mother of two, Ms Allan disclosed that she suffers from endometriosis, a condition affecting the ovaries that can be particularly painful during menstrual periods, and almost died giving birth.

“That defined who I am and what I believe government should do for working women,” she said.

She said her government opened 15 health clinics across the state, made the contraceptive pill available without a prescription and opened a “virtual” hospital emergency service to provide health advice online.

“This is what happens when women are heard,” she said.

While Ms Allan will be replaced by a man, Mr Carroll, betting markets predict he will be defeated by a 36-year-old woman, Liberal leader Jess Wilson.