Former chief executive of Hewlett-Packard becomes first woman to seek party’s nod for White House in crowded 2016 race – and to test Hillary Clinton ‘disconnect’

Carly Fiorina formally declared herself a candidate for president on Monday, making her the first woman to seek the Republican nomination in 2016 – and perhaps Hillary Clinton’s most antagonistic foil.



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She announced the move on Twitter with the simple message: “I am running for president.”

Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) I am running for President. http://t.co/TiEAlrWpUc

Fiorina, a former chief executive of Hewlett-Packard, joins senators Ted Cruz, Rand Paul and Marco Rubio in what is shaping up to be a crowded GOP field. The retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson announced his candidacy too; former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee is expected to launch his campaign on Tuesday.



Fiorina, 60, has never held public office, having lost a 2010 Senate bid in California after serving as an adviser to John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign. But she has touted her private sector experience as the first female CEO of a Fortune 20 company, despite a tumultuous few years as the head of Hewlett-Packard that ultimately led to her losing her job.

On her new website, she wrote a message that has been a staple of the run-up to a formal campaign launch: “Only in the United States of America can a young woman start as a secretary and work to become chief executive of one of the largest technology companies in the world.”

Carly Fiorina (@CarlyFiorina) Frank and I are excited to begin this journey and we look forward to seeing you on the trail! #Carly2016 pic.twitter.com/e06aOXxmvk

Fiorina is viewed by many as the Republican party’s best answer to Hillary Clinton, the frontrunner among Democrats. Fiorina is already assuming the role of Clinton attack dog and in numerous public appearances has gone after the former secretary of state’s family non-profit, the Clinton Foundation, and its dealings with foreign governments.

Her campaign launch video opens with her watching Clinton’s much-publicised campaign launch film on TV, before ostentatiously switching it off with her remote control. “Our founders never intended us to have a professional political class,” Fiorina says. “They believed that citizens and leaders needed to step forward. We know the only way to reimagine our government is to reimagine who is leading it.”

She adds: “If you’re tired of the soundbites, the vitriol, the pettiness, the egos, the corruption, if you believe that it’s time to declare the end of identity politics, if you believe that it’s time to declare the end of lowered expectations, if you believe that it’s time for citizens to stand up to the political class and say: ‘Enough’, then join us.”

In a call with reporters on Monday, she said her campaign was not just anti-Clinton, then proceeded to attack Clinton again.

“Yes, I would be running for president no matter who the nominee is on the Democratic side,” she told the call. “She [Clinton] reminds people that there is a huge disconnect between that political class and the hopes and concerns of the hardworking Americans everywhere.”

In an interview with ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday, she went further: “She clearly is not trustworthy, about a whole set of things,” Fiorina said of Clinton.

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On Tuesday, Fiorina is scheduled to speak at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference in New York before traveling to Iowa.



Her new book, Rising to the Challenge, is also set for release on Tuesday. It details aspects of her personal life and how the death of her daughter and her fight against cancer intensified her adherence to Christianity. She is also the author of Tough Choices, a memoir that focused on her business career.

Nearly a dozen Republicans are expected to make a bid for the White House, including former Florida governor Jeb Bush, Wisconsin governor Scott Walker and former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum.



On the Democratic side, the independent Vermont senator Bernie Sanders joined Clinton as an official candidate last week. Former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley and former Virginia senator Jim Webb are also expected to run.