After winning the election, Donald Trump's next task will be filling the top ranks of his cabinet.

In his first term, Trump surrounded himself with business giants, Wall Street executives and former generals – many of whom had no government experience and left the country under controversial circumstances.

Trump is once again willing to make unconventional decisions and avoid Washington insiders. The goal now will be to identify loyal people who can support even his most unorthodox proposals — like mass deportations of immigrants — but also win Senate confirmation. That task has become easier now that Republicans have gained control of the upper chamber of Congress.

Here are some of the top contenders who will serve in Trump's administration:

Key people/loyalists

Elon Musk

Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk became the loudest cheerleader for Trump. In the final phase of the election campaign, the CEO of Tesla and

Trump has already named Musk to head a new Efficiency Commission “whose mission will be to conduct a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government and make recommendations for drastic reforms.”

Other top Trump loyalists include Howard Lutnick, head of Wall Street giant Cantor Fitzgerald, who serves as co-chair of Trump's presidential transition team. A registered Republican who has also donated to Democrats like Hillary Clinton, he will play a crucial role in filling the administration.

Mike Johnson, the top Republican in the House of Representatives, who ingratiated himself with Trump by supporting his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, could also play a key role. So could Vivek Ramaswamy, who once sought the Republican presidential nomination, unless he decides to run for JD Vance's Senate seat in Ohio instead.

In Trump's second term, former adviser Stephen Miller and former strategist Steve Bannon, who was just released from federal prison, could also assume influential positions in the government again.

Chief of Staff

Susie Wiles

Susie Wiles, who effectively served as Trump's campaign manager, is a leading candidate for a top White House job. The 67-year-old grandmother from Florida has worked as a party official for more than four decades, helping elect Republicans at all levels of politics. A Politico report called her “one of the most influential figures in American politics today.”

Other candidates for the post include Brooke Rollins, a conservative lawyer who served as Trump's domestic policy adviser in the final year of his first term, and former senior adviser Kellyanne Conway.

Kevin McCarthy, the first speaker of the House of Representatives to be voted out due to opposition from hardline conservatives in the Republican Party, was also considered a potential candidate.

Ministry of Finance and Economy

Scott Bessent

The top job in business could be a battle between two hedge fund titans: Scott Bessent, who runs Key Square Capital Management, and billionaire John Paulson. Both have supported Trump's plans for import tariffs but portrayed them as a key negotiating tool that could be diluted if concessions were made to other countries.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Bessent expressed support for a strong U.S. dollar, which is the country's long-standing policy, and said Trump “stands by the U.S. as a reserve currency.”

Kevin Hassett

Among the most frequently mentioned names for the post of Federal Reserve chairman – a position that will become vacant when Jay Powell's term ends in May 2026 – is Kevin Hassett, who served as chairman of Trump's Council of Economic Advisers in his first term.

Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor who now works at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, was also considered a possible candidate for the post.

Trump has said presidents should have more say in monetary policy decisions, a sign that the Fed's longstanding independence could be under pressure.

On trade policy, a key plank of Trump's agenda, Robert Lighthizer and Peter Navarro, both of whom held trade-related positions in Trump's first administration, have emerged as some of the biggest proponents of tariffs.

Trump has decided to impose universal tariffs of up to 20 percent on all imports entering the United States, and a further 60 percent levy will be imposed on Chinese imports.

Foreign policy/defense

Ric Grenell

Ric Grenell, an ardent Trump defender who has made no secret of his desire to become his secretary of state, was U.S. ambassador to Germany and acting director of national intelligence in the former president's administration.

Trump referred to Grenell, known for his frequent clashes with the media, as his “envoy” and served as the de facto shadow foreign secretary during Joe Biden's term, meeting with far-right leaders from Central America, Eastern Europe and beyond.

Other candidates for secretary of state include Republican Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee and Trump's former national security adviser Robert O'Brien. Another Trump loyalist, Kash Patel, has been tipped as a possible national security adviser.

Tom Cotton

Previously, Trump considered Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton as his defense secretary, and he is again considered a candidate. A former Army infantry officer and Iraq and Afghanistan veteran, he is a staunch Trump supporter.

Mike Waltz

Other top contenders for the post include Florida Congressman Mike Waltz, a former Green Beret who has advised Trump on national security issues and is considered a key foreign policy voice in the party, as well as former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former Secretary of State for Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie.

More top jobs

Robert F. Kennedy Jr

Former campaign rival Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appears poised to take on a key role in shaping public health policy in Trump's administration. Kennedy, an anti-vaxxer, has suggested that universal vaccinations and fluoridated water could come under scrutiny, as could the Affordable Care Act – or Obamacare – which provides health insurance to 45 million Americans.