Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State from 2009-2013 and a two-time senator representing New York, is expected to announce her candidacy for the 2016 US presidential elections on Sunday says several media outlets. Clinton has long been expected to run and will assuredly be a top contender, having been beaten out by Barack Obama in her last campaign in 2008 during the democratic primaries.
Currently the only officially declared contenders for next year's election are Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Senator Rand Paul (R-KY).
The 67-year-old Mrs. Clinton is likely to announce her candidacy via Social media, followed by a larger event and a more formal speech to follow some time after. Clinton has been actively involved in American politics for over two decades, notably during her tenure as First Lady to President Bill Clinton from 1992 until 2000. According to a recent Gallup poll, 98% of Americans recognised her name, and she is largely considered to be the candidate to beat in the elections.
On the Democratic side, Vice President Joe Biden has also been considered as a contender, while Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has declined she will run but has nonetheless enjoyed significant grassroots support. Former governor of Florida Jeb Bush, brother of former president George Bush, has been cited as a likely candidate for the Republican primaries.
Clinton has received both significant praise and criticism for her role as Secretary of State, where she oversaw much of the American reaction to the Arab Spring and advocated in favor of military intervention in Libya to remove Muammar Gaddafi. Most recently, she released an update to her memoir, "Hard Choices," and faced a backlash against the revelation that she had used a personal email account for official government business.
Clinton already has significant support in the form of the Ready for Hillary super PAC, significant donors both large and small, and a wide popular following. Clinton is expected to visit the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire after the announcement to kick off her campaign.