Watch out Hillary: First female Republican presidential candidate announced

'It's time to declare the end of identity politics'

Republican Carly Fiorina, the former Hewlett-Packard executive, has announced her candidacy for president. Fiorina stands in an interesting position on more than one level.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - "Yes, I am running," Fiorina said on ABC's "Good Morning America." "I think I'm the best person for the job because I understand how the economy actually works. I understand the world; who's in it."

Fiorina stands as the first declared female Republican candidate, making her one of only a few women to ever seek the Republican Party's nomination for president. Fiorina has never held public office, although she did attempt ran for Senate in California in 2010 and she served as an adviser to John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign.

"She's someone with surprisingly broad appeal, though she's starting from a very tough position in 2016, relative to, say [Scott] Walker, [Marco] Rubio, [Jeb] Bush, etc," explained Liz Mair, a Republican strategist and 2010 adviser to Fiorina to New Republic.

Fiorina is positioning herself directly opposite of Democratic Hillary Clinton; some are referring to Fiorina as the "Anti-Hillary."

"If Hillary Clinton were to face a [Republican] female nominee, there are a whole set of things that she won't be able to talk about," Fiorina said last month. "She won't be able to play the gender card."

Speaking on Clinton's foreign policy experience Fiorina has states, "Unlike Mrs. Clinton, I know that flying is an activity, not an accomplishment." On diplomacy: "She may like hashtags but she doesn't know what leadership means." On Clinton's private emails scandal: "Hillary, news flash: I have four accounts on my single device." And on Clinton's gender: "I think if Hillary Clinton faces a woman opponent, she will get a hitch in her swing."

According to the Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin, Fiorina is a different kind of woman candidate for Republicans and nothing like Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann. "She is poised, polished, sophisticated and knowledgeable about the world. Moreover, she is not a woman politician; she is an accomplished woman running for political office."

Fiorina began laying out the foundation for her campaign prior to her official announcement; she has traveled to early swing states like Iowas and New Hampshire to meet with activists and donors.

Fiorina is expected to address the gender wage gap and abortion during her campaign. Fiorina believes the wage gap is the women's fault for leaving the workforce, bureaucracies and unions. She supports a federal bill banning abortions after 20 weeks, because she is a female.

"If you're tired of the sound bites, 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," Fiorina stated in a video on her campaign website.

"[She's] just a lot smarter than most of these folks," Mair expressed. "She is also not a flip-flopper; she's consistent, fearless and tough-which not all of the boys are."

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