Today, former eBay CEO Meg Whitman will formally announce her bid for the GOP nomination for the 2010 California gubernatorial race. Whitman wants to cut state spending by another $15 billion and create 2 million private-sector jobs by 2015, according to a speech prepared for today’s announcement in Fullerton, Calif.
But Whitman’s candidacy has been in the works for a while. In March, Pattie wrote a Coins2Day cover story called “Can Meg Whitman Save California?” about joining Whitman as she hit the campaign trail. Pattie also talked with Whitman on stage last week at the Coins2Day Most Powerful Women Summit, where Whitman said that campaigning is “more consuming than eBay.” In the interview (see video posted below), Whitman discusses her struggle to remain authentic while campaigning, her position on Prop. 8, and how to keep jobs in California. –Jessica Shambora
[cnnmoney-video vid= /video/fortune/2009/09/21/f_mpw_whitman_full.fortune]