Fiorina expected to announce US Senate plans

After months of speculation but few public appearances, former Hewlett-Packard chief executive Carly Fiorina was expected to announce her plans Wednesday for the U.S. Senate seat held by liberal stalwart Barbara Boxer of California.

Fiorina's campaign said she was to make "a major announcement" during an appearance at a business in the Orange County city of Garden Grove Wednesday morning.

Her potential entry into the race could present Boxer with her most formidable re-election challenge, but Fiornia first would have to survive a Republican primary against a conservative state lawmaker who has worked feverishly over the past year to court GOP voters.

The 55-year-old former Silicon Valley executive served as economic adviser to John McCain's failed presidential bid last year, a position that elevated her national profile. Before that, she had a public falling out with HP board members, who fired her in 2005 after she pushed through a merger with Compaq Computer Corp. in a deal that caused job losses and reduced her company's value. HP has since rebounded, but opinions differ over how much credit for that Fiorina deserves.

On the way out, she received a $21 million severance package - a cash cushion that has made Boxer's team nervous.

Even before her announcement, Boxer used the threat of a Fiorina candidacy to boost her own fundraising, collecting $1.6 million in the last quarter and reporting $6.3 million in the bank last month.

"If Fiorina decides to fund the campaign with her own personal wealth, this could be the most expensive Boxer campaign yet," said Rose Kapolczynski, a spokeswoman for Boxer's campaign. "We could be looking at a $30 million or $35 million campaign. ... She could do a lot to remake her image with that and do a lot to distort the Boxer record."

Fiorina's spokeswoman, Beth Miller, did not immediately return a call seeking clarification about the planned announcement.

Boxer, 68, is in her third term in the Senate and easily won re-election in 1998 and 2004. She has long been a target of conservatives - they pounced earlier this year when she chastised a brigadier general who called her "ma'am" during a congressional hearing - but has yet to face a serious re-election challenge.

So far, her only announced opposition is state Assemblyman Chuck DeVore. A military officer and businessman from Irvine, he has been aggressively campaigning on a shoestring budget for months, styling himself as the only true conservative in the race.

He is appealing to the party's base as the true candidate of limited government, lower taxes and conservative fiscal stewardship.

"American voters want bold colors. They don't want pale pastels," he said.

Fiorina, who is in the final stages of breast cancer treatment, would be the fifth Silicon Valley executive to compete in a statewide race in California next year. All three GOP gubernatorial candidates - former eBay chief executive Meg Whitman, state Insurance Commissioner and high tech entrepreneur Steve Poizner and former congressman Tom Campbell - have ties to the valley.

Chris Kelly, chief privacy officer for Facebook, has announced an exploratory bid for the Democratic nomination for attorney general.

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Associated Press Writer Tom Verdin in Sacramento contributed to this report.