Carly Fiorina (born September 6, 1954) was president and chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard Company from 1999 to 2005, the largest global technology company in the world. Previously she held senior leadership positions at AT&T and Lucent Technologies for nearly 20 years. Fortune Magazine ranked her the most powerful woman in American business [1] and Time Magazine listed her as one of the top 100 most influential people in the world. [2] She is a graduate from Stanford University and holds a master of science degree from MIT's Sloan School.
Carly Fiorina has conservative Republican leanings, though she has shown an unusual amount of sympathy for the pro-choice movement.[3] She actively supported Mitt Romney's 2008 primary campaign and later John McCain's presidential campaign. She was the Republican candidate for the United States Senate from California in the election of 2010 but lost to incumbent Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer. On May 4, 2015, Fiorina formally launched a campaign for the Republican nomination for president of the United States in the 2016 election.[4]
On February 20, 2009 Fiorina was diagnosed with breast cancer. She underwent surgery at Stanford Hospital on March 2, 2009 followed by chemotherapy, which caused her to lose her hair, and radiation therapy. She has been given "an excellent prognosis for a full recovery."