Washington // A handful of Republican politicians who stood by Donald Trump in the White House race received special mention in his victory speech and are expected to be rewarded with cabinet positions.
Here are some of the names being linked to top posts in a Trump administration:
Newt Gingrich
Mr Gingrich, 73, is tipped to be the next secretary of state.
A mercurial former speaker of the house of representatives, the former Georgia legislator was the architect of a 1994 Republican insurgency that ended four decades of Democratic control of the chamber.
He was forced to resign the speakership four years later because of ethics violations but has remained an influential Republican ideas man, writer and political consultant. He made an unsuccessful run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2011.
An early Trump supporter, Mr Gingrich reportedly made the New York billionaire’s shortlist of vice-presidential running mates but was passed over in favour of Indiana governor Mike Pence.
Rudy Giuliani
Mr Giuliani, 72, a former mayor of New York and prosecutor, is considered to be at the front of the line to be attorney general, having gone through the campaign’s highs and lows.
He was the first to get a shout out from Mr Trump on Wednesday.
“He’s unbelievable. Unbelievable. He travelled with us and he went through meetings, and Rudy never changes,” Mr Trump said.
Mr Giuliani was celebrated as the determined face of New York after the September 11, 2001 attacks that toppled the World Trade Centre.
As mayor of the city from 1994 to 2001 he was credited with reducing violent crime and improving the quality of life in America’s biggest and most complex metropolis.
As US attorney for the southern district of New York he prosecuted high-profile mafia cases and Wall Street corruption.
Mr Giuliani ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 but withdrew after learning he had prostate cancer.
Chris Christie
The New Jersey governor threw his support behind Mr Trump after his bid for the Republican nomination fizzled.
Mr Christie, 54, has been mentioned for various posts in a Trump administration, including attorney general or commerce secretary.
He is considered a big Republican political talent but comes with a major liability: a scandal over the closure of an important bridge linking New Jersey and New York, allegedly to punish a local mayor. Two former aides to Christie were convicted of all charges in the case on November 4.
During the Republican primary debates, Mr Christie helped Mr Trump by damaging rival Marco Rubio with a scathing attack on the Florida senator’s scripted answers to questions.
A former US attorney, Mr Christie later headed Mr Trump’s transition team and was reportedly on the shortlist for vice-presidential running mate.
Reince Priebus
Mr Priebus, 44, is said to be the inside favourite to be Mr Trump’s White House chief of staff. The morning after Tuesday’s stunning victory, he was huddled with the president-elect at Trump Tower in New York.
As chairman of the Republican national committee, Mr Priebus provided Mr Trump with a crucial link to the party’s resources in getting out the vote as well as to a wary Republican leadership.
A lawyer with deep roots in Wisconsin’s Republican party, Mr Priebus is close to the house speaker Paul Ryan, a fellow Wisconsinite who will be crucial to passage of the new administration’s legislative agenda.
Wisconsin was in Mr Trump’s win column, a stunning Republican breakthrough in a state that has long voted for Democrats for president.
Jeff Sessions
The US senator from Alabama, a Trump supporter when other leading Republicans were dead set against his candidacy, is being touted as a possible secretary of defence.
At his victory party in New York, Mr Trump hailed Mr Sessions as “the first man, first senator, first major, major politician” to endorse him.
“Let me tell you, he is highly respected in Washington because he is as smart as you get,” Mr Trump said.
One of the senate’s most conservative members, Mr Sessions, 69, has opposed nearly every Democratic initiative under president Barack Obama, including the Affordable Care Act.
A supporter of the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, he sits on the senate armed services committee, the judiciary committee, the budget committee and the committee on environment and public works.
Steven Mnuchin
Mr Trump’s campaign finance chairman is reported to be the likely choice for treasury secretary.
A veteran of Goldman Sachs with deep connections in Wall Street, Mr Mnuchin would be a relatively conventional pick for a president-elect who campaigned as a populist fighting a “rigged system”.
After amassing a fortune at Goldman Sachs, the Yale graduate became a movie producer, founding a company involved in bringing out a number of box office hits, including the X-Men franchise, Avatar and American Sniper.
Michael Flynn
A retired lieutenant general, Mr Flynn served as a campaign surrogate who gave Mr Trump credibility with veterans despite the candidate’s lack of military service.
A former director of the Defence Intelligence Agency from 2012-2014, Mr Flynn was reportedly forced out of that post after clashing with his superiors.
During the campaign, he was sharply critical of the administration’s handling of the threat posed by ISIL.
He was a keynote speaker at the Republican national convention and was mentioned as a possible Trump running mate.
He could be rewarded with a top security position like national security adviser.
* Agence France-Presse
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