Meg Whitman
Republican Candidate
As the leader that created a huge number of jobs of global company eBay, Meg developed strong ideas about the ingredients for 21st century success at every scale, from small business to the corporate level, from local to state to national government. She saw a critical need for more focused problem solving in government by those with the tools to lead and the willingness and independence to challenge the status quo. Her decade at the helm of eBay came to a close just as California’s growing economic crisis was unfolding. Job losses, undisciplined spending and the declining performance of California’s schools were deeply troubling to Meg and she thought carefully about how she could lend her experiences to help. In February 2009, she announced her candidacy to become California’s next governor. “We’ve got to focus – we’ve got to create jobs, cut spending, and invest in fixing our educational system,” Meg says.
Meg has committed her energy, her trademark optimism and her belief in fiscal restraint to the challenge of rebuilding California. She has done so with the full support of her family, which is her greatest source of pride. Meg and her husband, Griff, a neurosurgeon at Stanford Hospital, have been married for nearly 30 years. Their two sons are now young adults. Meg and her family are ardent outdoor enthusiasts who love hiking, skiing, fly fishing and enjoying all of California’s natural treasures. “If we let California fail, we all fail,” she says. “And we love California too much to let it fail. We have to work together to make it the place of our dreams again.”
Meg traveled the nation and spoke with voters. During these campaigns, she saw a critical need for more focused problem solving in government by those with the tools to lead and the willingness and independence to challenge the status quo. Her decade at the helm of eBay came to a close just as California’s growing economic crisis was unfolding. Job losses, undisciplined spending and the declining performance of California’s schools were deeply troubling to Meg and she thought carefully about how she could lend her experiences to help. In February 2009, she announced her candidacy to become California’s next governor. “We’ve got to focus – we’ve got to create jobs, cut spending, and invest in fixing our educational system,” Meg says.
Candidate's biography provided by the Meg Whitman Campaign.
