As the dust settles on Donald Trump’s historic election victory in the United States, the president-elect has begun to choose who will be in his administration for his second term in the White House.

During the campaign, Mr Trump He has refrained from directly confirming any appointments but has frequently dropped hints about who he would like to see in his team.

So far he has only revealed the chief of staff, the so-called “ice maiden”. Susie Wilesthe person who co-managed his campaign.

Cabinet picks and broader administration and advisory roles will likely be announced in the coming days and weeks as the transition team prepares for Republicans to return to the White House in January.

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So who is there and who are the top contenders?

Susie Wiles

Susie Wiles is a veteran Republican campaign manager and helped elect Donald Trump as well as Ronald Reagan and Ron DeSantis in 2016 and 2024. She is the first member of his team to be announced and becomes the first female chief of staff. in American history.

The 67-year-old Florida resident has had a political career that spans decades, but he largely stays out of the spotlight and rarely gives interviews.

She is the daughter of the late American football player Pat Summerall, and one of her first jobs in politics was as an assistant to one of her former New York Giants teammates when he became the Republican representative.

Outside of politics, he worked in the private sector as a lobbyist for Ballard Partners, whose clients include Amazon, Google and MLB (Major League Baseball), and then Mercury, working with Elon Musk’s SpaceX and the Qatar Embassy.

This time around, Mr. Trump praised her for her “best-run” presidential campaign, describing her as “incredible” at a rally in Milwaukee earlier this year and an “ice maiden” in his victory speech.

Elon Musk

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has been one of Mr Trump’s staunchest supporters in the months before the election, spending at least $119 million (£92 million) campaigning on his behalf in seven battleground states.

Looks like his loyalty will be rewarded Mr Trump promised the owner of X A role as head of a new Department of Government Efficiency (or DOGE for short, a reference to the Dogecoin cryptocurrency that Mr. Musk frequently supports).

Mr. Trump said at an event in September that the department “will be tasked with conducting a full financial and performance audit of the entire federal government.”

That could give the billionaire the power to break up the U.S. federal bureaucracy that both he and Mr. Trump say have long held America back.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Robert F Kennedy Jr abandoned his independent presidential campaign to support Mr Trump in August.

It was a move that drew condemnation from many members of the prominent vaccine skeptic’s family, but as with Musk, his public support looks set to be rewarded by the president-elect.

Mr. Trump has promised to give himself a role focused on health policy, and Mr. Kennedy has hinted at a possible initiative, stating on inauguration day at X that “the Trump White House will recommend that all U.S. water systems remove fluoride from public water.” .

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Mr. Kennedy – son of politician Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of assassinated president John F. Kennedy – He made a name for himself as a vaccine skeptic He frequently repeated debunked claims, including linking vaccines to autism in children.

Don Jr, Eric and Lara Trump

Mr. Trump’s daughter and son-in-law, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, were among his senior advisers during his first term. So will the tycoon once again be able to keep family members close while in the Oval Office?

In June 2023, Mr. Trump said he did not want his children to serve in a second administration and that it was “very painful for the family.”

However, while Mrs. Trump and Mr. Kushner have since stayed away from politics, Mr. Trump’s other two sons were Don. Jr and Eric played important roles during the campaign.

Eric’s wife, Lara Trump, already has a prominent role in US politics, as she serves as co-chair of the Republican Party.

Mike Pompeo

The former CIA director and secretary of state is considered a top candidate for secretary of defense or another role related to national security, intelligence or diplomacy.

Among Mr. Trump’s closest allies, he is one of Ukraine’s fiercest defenders.

Mike Waltz, a congressman from Florida, and Tom Cotton, an Army officer-turned senator from Arkansas who studied at Harvard College and Harvard Law School, are also believed to be candidates for the defense role.

Richard Grenell

Richard Grenell, among Mr. Trump’s closest aides on foreign policy, is thought to be a potential choice for national security adviser.

His private dealings with foreign leaders and his often caustic personality have made him a controversial figure, but he may well be part of Mr. Trump’s second administration.

Mr. Grenell had in the past supported establishing an autonomous region in eastern Ukraine to end the war, but Kiev rejected the idea as unacceptable.

Larry Kudlow

Fox News star Larry Kudlow served as director of the National Economic Council for much of Mr. Trump’s first term and is said to have an outside shot at becoming his treasury secretary this time around.

Other names linked to the post include billionaire hedge fund manager and donor John Paulson, who hosted a fundraiser for the former president that raised more than $50 million (£38 million).

Marco Rubio

Marco Rubio, the Florida senator who unsuccessfully ran against Mr. Trump for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, is a potential candidate for secretary of state.

His policies are largely in line with Mr. Trump’s, and he was a candidate to be his running mate in 2024 before J.D. Vance took this office.

Bill Hagerty, another of his running mates, is also linked to the position, as is Robert O’Brien, who served as Mr. Trump’s fourth and final national security adviser during his first term.