Rahm Emanuel, Bill Richardson and Tom Daschle — the names of these Democratic stalwarts have dominated speculation about who will sit in Barack Obama’s Cabinet.

Obama, who ran as a Washington outsider on the theme of change, is considering longtime Democratic players to fill some of his administration’s most important positions.

Before Emanuel, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), an early Obama backer, was frequently mentioned as the top candidate. What position he may take in the new administration is still the subject of a significant amount of chatter. Daschle also has been mentioned as the next secretary of the Health and Human Services (HHS) Department or as a healthcare czar who would be responsible for shepherding a reform bill through Congress.

The Obama campaign announced Wednesday that John Podesta, director of the Center for American Progress; Valerie Jarrett, a top campaign adviser; and Pete Rouse, who is the chief of staff in Obama’s Senate office, would direct the transition team.

But even before the first results came in on Election Day, Washington wondered what an Obama administration would look like.

The popular parlor game has no shortage of players. There are members who see themselves as strong potential candidates for a Cabinet position, congressional staff aides who dream of running an executive department and lobbyists who want to tailor client pitches to their personal relationships with yet-unnamed White House officials.

The Hill compiled a list of other possible candidates for Cabinet-level and other senior positions in the Obama administration:

Several names have surfaced to run the Agriculture Department. Tom Buis, a former aide to Daschle and now the president of the National Farmers Union, is one of them. He is a registered lobbyist, and Obama’s chief strategist, David Axelrod, has said administration officials wouldn’t be put in charge of agencies that they had lobbied. But Buis’s group represents small farmers, not the type of constituency that typically prompts revolving-door worries.

Former Rep. Charles Stenholm (D-Texas), former Rep. Jim Leach (R-Iowa) and ex-Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) are also mentioned.

For attorney general, Eric Holder, who was deputy attorney general in the Clinton administration, is apparently a potential candidate. Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala.), who, like Obama, is a graduate of Harvard Law School, is also a possibility, although he is reportedly also interested in a run for governor in his home state.

Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano (D), meanwhile, has also been mentioned for the attorney general slot, as well as for several other top positions.

At the Commerce Department, the odds-makers in town seem to favor Obama finance chairwoman Penny Pritzker. In addition to her work on the campaign, Pritzker is a Global Hyatt Corp. board member. She is one of several Chicago connections Obama may surround himself with in Washington.

Also mentioned for Commerce is Jason Furman, an economic adviser on the campaign.

For Defense secretary, the smart money seems to be on Robert Gates staying put through the first part of the year. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), an Army veteran and current member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is another popular choice — but not now. If Reed took the job, Rhode Island’s Republican governor would choose his replacement.

John Hamre, deputy secretary of Defense during the Clinton administration, is also mentioned. Hamre is now the president and CEO of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Marine Gen. Jim Jones, former NATO commander, is also mentioned as a possibility. Richard Danzig, who served as Navy secretary in the Clinton administration, is apparently interested in the deputy secretary job.

At the Education Department, Arne Duncan, the CEO of Chicago Public Schools, appears to be a leading candidate, along with former North Carolina Gov. James Hunt.

For Energy, several lobbyists said Philip Sharp, a former Democratic congressman from Indiana and current president of Resources for the Future, is under consideration. Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), the current chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, is also a possibility.

Obama has already said energy policy will be his top priority, and his campaign had no shortage of advisers on the topic. Other frequently mentioned names that could help shape energy and environmental policies include Jason Grumet, Elgie Holstein, Robert Sussman, Todd Atkinson and Heather Zichal.