LOS ANGELES (AP) - Meg Whitman, the billionaire former chief executive of eBay, easily won the race for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, setting up a general election contest against former Gov. Jerry Brown.
Meanwhile, f
ormer Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina won California's GOP primary for U.S. Senate, setting up a general election battle this fall with three-term Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer.Whitman took a large lead in the polls in the final weeks of the campaign after a negative ad war over which Republican was the most conservative.
The contest was the most expensive primary in California history, with Whitman spending more than $81 million and state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner spending $25 million.
Whitman, who has never before run for elective office, is the first woman to win the Republican nomination for governor in California.
Brown, governor from 1975-83, was unopposed in the Democratic primary.
The 55-year-old Fiorina rolled to victory Tuesday after a campaign that focused on convincing conservatives she is one of them - opposing abortion, gay marriage and steps the government has taken to prop up the economy.
Fiorina started her campaign as the front-runner but fell behind when former congressman Tom Campbell switched from the gubernatorial race to the Senate contest.
She made up significant ground in the final month by putting much of her personal fortune into a late advertising blitz.
Boxer was unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
