Who He’s Already Chosen and Who He Might Choose Next

Several names are being floated as Trump incrementally fills out his Cabinet and other top White House roles

President-elect Donald Trump has begun the process of selecting his advisory team for a second term in the White House, sifting through a pile of potential Cabinet nominees and looking to other loyal allies who can be slotted into senior administration posts.

Dozens of top jobs are up for grabs in the Trump-Vance administration, and everyone who helped the former president emerge victorious in the 2024 presidential election is undoubtedly hoping to cash in by gaining influence on his policies — some who serve in Congress, some from Wall Street, some who helped compile Project 2025 and some who played roles in his White House four years ago.

Related: Elon Musk Has Been with Donald Trump ‘Nearly Every Single Day’ Since Election, ‘Weighing In on Staffing Decisions’: Report

PEOPLE is keeping up with the latest rumors and staffing decisions as Trump’s Cabinet starts to take form, along with the high-level openings that will have open access to the Oval Office. Here’s where things stand as of now.

Filled Positions

White House Chief of Staff

Susie Wiles was the first official tapped to join Trump’s next administration as the White House chief of staff, the senior-most political appointee in his administration who will have unmatched influence on his priorities and decision-making as the top adviser in the president’s ear.

Wiles, 67, served as a senior adviser and co-campaign manager on Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. The Florida-based lobbyist has earned a reputation for being quiet and calculated in Trump’s orbit, staying largely behind the scenes on the campaign. She will be the first female White House chief of staff.

“Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again,” Trump said in a statement obtained by Politico.

Trump had four chiefs of staff during his first administration. The final one, Mark Meadows, is under indictment in two separate criminal cases for his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

‘Border Czar’

Tom Homan, former acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was recruited as Trump’s “border czar” to help carry out the president-elect’s controversial plan for the largest mass deportation in history.

“I am pleased to announce that the Former ICE Director, and stalwart on Border Control, Tom Homan, will be joining the Trump Administration, in charge of our Nation’s Borders,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday.

The border czar is not an official government position, but Trump said it will entail Homan, 62, monitoring the United States’ borders, plus overseeing security on the seas and in the skies.

Homan, who has asserted that the mass deportation plan is not racist, told Fox News Channel on Sunday that ICE will be responsible for finding illegal immigrants. “When we go out there, we’re going to know who we’re looking for,” he said. “We most likely know where they’re going to be, and it’s going to be done in a humane manner.”

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, the fourth-ranking House Republican, will vacate her role to serve as the United States ambassador to the United Nations. In Trump’s first administration, the position was notably held by friend-turned-foe Nikki Haley and, later, conservative business consultant Kelly Craft.

Stefanik replaced Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney as chair of the House GOP in 2021, after Cheney was stripped of her leadership position for speaking out against Trump. Stefanik, now 40, was the youngest congresswoman in history at the time of her swearing-in in 2015. Once considered a moderate, she rose the ranks after moving further right to become a fierce defender of the MAGA movement.

Related: Liz Cheney Sounds Alarm After Donald Trump Suggests She Face Firing Squad: ‘How Dictators Destroy Free Nations’

“I am honored to nominate Chairwoman Elise Stefanik to serve in my Cabinet as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations,” Trump told New York Post in a statement on Sunday night. “Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter.”

Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

Former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin, a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve, was chosen to helm the Environmental Protection Agency. Before entering politics, Zeldin briefly ran a law firm and worked as an attorney for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

“Lee, with a very strong legal background, has been a true fighter for America First policies,” Trump said in a statement on Monday, Nov. 11. “He will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet.”

In recent years, the conservative-leaning Supreme Court has chipped away at the EPA’s power to impose regulations on businesses that would help protect citizens from pollution and combat climate change. Trump campaigned in 2016 on abolishing the EPA, and sought to dramatically cut back its funding as president. In the next term, he is expected to continue the work he began by rolling back environmental protections that force businesses to be mindful of their footprint.

Rumored Candidates

Attorney General

Utah Sen. Mike Lee, an outspokenly loyal Trump ally who hails from a prominent political family, has been one of the most commonly mentioned names to lead the Department of Justice, according to Reuters, CNN and TheNew York Times, though he reportedly told Deseret News, “I have the job I want.”

Other names in the running for attorney general reportedly include U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a relatively inexperienced Trump-appointed judge who controversially threw out his federal classified documents case; far-right Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt, the state’s former attorney general; former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker; former congressman and national intelligence director John Ratcliffe; and Trump administration veteran Mark Paoletta, a close friend of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife, Ginni.

Related: Controversial Judge Who Threw Out Trump’s Classified Docs Case Is Now on His Shortlist for Attorney General: Report

Two people who have gotten into trouble with the law themselves have also made the shortlist to become the nation’s chief law enforcement officer: former assistant attorney general Jeffrey Clark, who was chastised by the Washington, D.C. bar association and indicted by a Georgia grand jury for alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election results, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who — like Trump — has been indicted and impeached.

Mike Davis, an outspoken attorney who has promised retribution against Trump’s critics — including telling liberal prosecutors, judges and witnesses to “go to hell” — claimed that he is no longer in the running for attorney general amid recent backlash for threatening to put New York Attorney General Letitia James’ “fat a– in prison.”

Secretary of State

Several people are reportedly in the running for secretary of state, the most coveted Cabinet position that has added significance as foreign policy takes center stage with the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.

A frequently mentioned contender is Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a staunch Israel advocate and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who was thought to be on Trump’s running mate shortlist over the summer. Another top candidate is Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty, a former economic adviser to George H.W. Bush who co-founded an investment firm and has served as the U.S. ambassador to Japan.

Ric Grenell, a former ambassador to Germany who served as acting director of national intelligence under Trump, is another possible pick. Grenell, who aligns with the far-right, helped with Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

Other names that have been mentioned are Vivek Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur and Trump’s former GOP primary opponent who was teased with some sort of role in the administration; Robert O’Brien, a former national security adviser to Trump; and Brian Hook, a onetime policy adviser to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who has helped with Trump’s State Department transition effort, according to BBC.

Secretary of the Treasury

The secretary of the treasury is effectively the chief financial officer of the United States government, in charge of shaping an administration’s economic policy. Among the many in Trump’s orbit with finance backgrounds, a few names have seemingly stood out as top contenders.

Hedge fund manager Scott Bessent, a gay man who once supported Al Gore’s presidential campaign and worked as an investor for liberal philanthropist George Soros, has become an unlikely ally of Trump’s and reportedly met with the president-elect after his victory.

Other possible candidates to run the treasury include former U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, a big proponent of tariffs; Republican mega-donor John Paulson, another hedge fund manager; billionaire Wall Street executive Howard Lutnick, who has helped vet potential White House administrators; Fox Business commentator Larry Kudlow, who previously served as director of Trump’s National Economic Council; and former SEC Chair Jay Clayton.

Secretary of Defense

Two top candidates for defense secretary, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, have seemingly been removed from the running, which quieted the rumor mill. The position is one of the more senior-ranking in the Cabinet, overseeing the U.S. military.

Though there weren’t any other immediate front-runners for the position, some have suggested that the shortlist includes former national security adviser Robert O’Brien, who was a major in the U.S. Army Reserve’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps, and Florida Rep. Mike Waltz, a decorated Green Beret who serves as a colonel in the National Guard.

Secretary of Commerce

One name has risen above the rest in conversations about who could step in as secretary of commerce in a second Trump administration: Linda McMahon, the former WWE CEO and co-founder who went on to lead the Small Business Administration from 2017-2019. McMahon is guiding Trump’s transition team after serving as the co-chair of a pro-Trump super PAC, America First Policy Action.

“It is hers if she wants it,” a senior Trump official told CBS News of the secretary position, noting McMahon’s close relationship to the president-elect.

Secretary of Health and Human Services

Trump previously said that he would let anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “do whatever he wants” with government health agencies after he is sworn in, leading many to wonder if he will be tapped to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. That would require Senate confirmation, though — and even knowing Republicans will have a Senate majority in January, Kennedy’s political and personal controversies could become a roadblock.

It’s possible Kennedy would become some sort of health “czar” instead, which would skirt the Senate nomination process and leave room for someone else to become the HHS secretary.

Related: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Says Donald Trump Will ‘Remove Fluoride’ from Public Drinking Water if Elected

If Kennedy is not made the secretary of health and human services, Politico has predictions for who may step in. The list of possibilities includes former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, an assistant secretary of HHS under George W. Bush who now chairs the Trump-aligned Center for a Healthy America; Brian Blase, a onetime special assistant to Trump on economic policy who now serves as president of a conservative, health-focused think tank; Eric Hargan, a two-time deputy secretary of HHS who started a health care consulting group; Paul Mango, the deputy chief of staff at the Department of HHS during Trump’s first term; and Joe Grogan, who has served in a number of White House roles through the years and was assigned to Trump’s White House COVID-19 task force.

Secretary of Homeland Security

The Department of Homeland Security will play a significant role in Trump’s second administration as the overseer of immigration and border security, in addition to anti-terrorism efforts, cyber-security, disaster prevention and the Secret Service.

Trump already recruited Tom Homan as a “border czar” to help with his mass deportation effort, but the secretary of homeland security would likely need to be someone equally willing to take a hardline stance on immigration and work on finding resources to round up immigrants and detain them in camps.

Chad Wolf, who served as the acting DHS secretary for more than a year during Trump’s first term, has already proved he’s up for the task, making him a contender. Project 2025 contributor Mark Morgan — who has held top roles at Border Patrol, ICE, and Customs and Border Protection — is also a possibility. And Tennessee Rep. Mark Green, chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, is also seen as someone who would show loyalty to Trump at the DHS, though he withdrew his name from the running for a role in Trump’s first administration after racist and anti-LGBTQ comments drew public scrutiny.

Director of the CIA

The New York Times reports that Trump is looking for someone who is willing to overhaul the Central Intelligence Agency to step in as director.

Trump White House adviser Kash Patel, who has taken extremist positions on weaponizing Trump’s Justice Department, is reportedly on the list, as well as former national intelligence director John Ratcliffe and Florida Rep. Mike Waltz, who was also floated for defense secretary.

Other Positions to Fill

Trump’s transition team has countless senior positions to fill before he takes office on Jan. 20, 2025, beyond the initial wave of nominations and hirings.

Selections for these Cabinet (and other high-level) roles will also soon be revealed, completing his advisory team for the new term:

• Secretary of the Interior

• Secretary of Agriculture

• Secretary of Labor

• Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

• Secretary of Transportation

• Secretary of Energy

• Secretary of Veteran Affairs

• Director of the Office of Management and Budget

• Director of National Intelligence

• U.S. Trade Representative

• Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers

• Administrator of the Small Business Administration

• Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy

• White House Counsel