Here’s who could be in Trump’s cabinet as transition team, president-elect’s strategies for appointments

President-elect Donald Trump — fresh off his emphatic victory over Vice President Kamala Harris — is spending Wednesday with his team in Palm Beach planning how to fill out his second administration.

The Trump transition team has been at work for months preparing for an internal “reveal,” campaign adviser Brian Hughes told The Post — though discussion among aides this week is expected to focus on the process rather than specific nominee names.

Sources close to the Trump campaign said they expect a string of Republican Senate victories to ease Trump’s return to power — giving him greater flexibility to go with his gut and choose cabinet secretaries who align with his populist policies.

Most of the transition work is expected to take place at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago compound, Hughes said — where allies and advisers have long gathered to bend the president-elect’s ear.

In addition to cabinet secretaries, there are about 4,000 presidential nominees in the executive branch who do not require Senate confirmation — with those choices giving the federal bureaucracy more concrete results and shaping its buoyancy.

What we know about the second Trump transition

Those overseeing the process include co-chairs Howard Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, and Linda McMahon, who led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s first term.

The transition team also includes one-time and future first sons Eric and Donald Jr., Robert F. Kennedy Jr., former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) and Vice President JD Vance.

Trump is expected to make the highest-profile choices himself — and has spoken bitterly about following the recommendations of others during his first term, resulting in aides resisting or defying his orders.

Two of the most important decisions will be Trump’s picks to become Attorney General and White House Chief of Staff.

In recent weeks, three front-runners have emerged for the latter position, which does not require Senate confirmation despite its massive role in directing federal policy, implementing a president’s orders and controlling access to him.

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is running alongside Trump campaign manager Susie Wiles and former White House domestic policy adviser Brooke Rollins.

Wiles is considered the most likely choice, and Trump said in the latter part of the campaign that he believes McCarthy was wrong to choose not to nominate GOP lawmakers loyal to the 45th president to the House of Representatives committee that investigated the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. .

---

Follow The Post’s coverage of the 2024 election

---

Still, McCarthy would bring significant Washington experience that could be useful in making the most of Trump’s electoral mandate.

Republicans regret focusing on fruitless efforts to repeal Obamacare after Trump’s shock victory in 2016, resulting in delays for other signature items on the 45th president’s agenda, such as tax cuts — which came later in Trump’s first year in office — and building the border wall between The United States and Mexico, which Congress then refused to fund.

Trump has promised to enact sweeping tax reforms that will require legislative skills — including an end to federal taxes on tips, overtime pay and Social Security benefits, along with tax write-offs for interest on domestic vehicle loans and a mandate that makes in vitro fertilization free for prospective parents.

Wiles, despite his relative lack of DC experience, has been praised for running an effective 2024 campaign that delivered a resounding victory while avoiding the infighting that plagued previous Trump teams.

The attorney general, meanwhile, is likely the most consequential post in the cabinet — as it would pave the way for the dismissal of two federal criminal cases against him and potentially defend him against criminal cases in New York and Georgia.

In November 2022, Trump launched his latest campaign ahead of feared criminal charges — with the then-ex-president’s circle of outside allies reduced to a handful of people due to backlash over his challenges to the 2020 election results.

Former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, one of the few top Trump administration officials who attended his boss’ campaign launch, is one of the potential candidates for the post.

Whitaker would be a relatively conservative choice and would bring experience from his time in the first Trump administration.

Other rumored potential attorneys general include senators and even governors with law degrees — such as Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry or Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt, both of whom led legal challenges to the Biden-Harris administration’s censorship push on social media companies.

Trump has publicly indicated some of the people he wants on his side after praising North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who is likely in the running for energy secretary.

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy is also believed to be in the running for either energy secretary or interior secretary.

National security roles such as defense secretary, FBI director and top intelligence posts could go to Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), former Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell and former National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien.

Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.) is also considered a possible top-tier appointee for a defense-related position.

Late. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) is being heavily considered as a potential recruit for secretary of state, The Post previously reported. But the job could be given to a number of others, including Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), a former U.S. ambassador to Japan.

Former acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf could also return to the White House — possibly in the same role he previously held.

Other Republicans have told The Post they would be open to serving in the Trump administration, including Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and former New York representative Lee Zeldin.

Many influential people do not technically want to work for the government.

Trump has promised to appoint billionaire SpaceX and Tesla founder Elon Musk to lead a powerful commission focused on reducing government waste — and Musk is also likely to be a highly influential adviser on space and business policy.

The 45th and soon to be 47th president also promised to give RFK Jr. an influential position dedicated to improving the health of Americans after Kennedy ended his independent presidential campaign and endorsed him in August.

Kennedy’s controversial skepticism about vaccine safety likely excludes him from a Senate-confirmed position — though that doesn’t necessarily diminish his influence, as informal advisers often held sway during Trump’s first term.

Republicans are currently on track to hold at least 53 seats in the Senate, giving Trump a cushion of at least three defections on the nominees, with Vance waiting in the wings to break a 50-50 tie as speaker of the chamber.