As a long week of elections came to a close, the US faced unprecedented times, with a president who lost by 74 electoral votes refusing to concede, forcing President-elect Joe Biden to work around Trump.

While the White House hesitates to fully cooperate with president-elect Joe Biden, his team continues to work around them, proceeding with appointing a diverse group of cabinet members for Biden’s 2021-2025 term.

Loretto senior AnaMarie Cordova said, “His nominations for cabinet picks are phenomenal, we don’t have a majority white-male cabinet, we’re seeing People of Color and a lot of women, which is great.”

Yet another unprecedented move by the Biden team is that over half of his staff are People of Color, and majority consist of women.

Definitive decisions have yet to be made; however, stand out picks have emerged for key agencies working under the President-elect.

Working rapidly to begin planning, the Biden team announced their COVID-19 task force, naming qualified doctors such as Chairman Surgeon General Vivek Murthy to senior fellow from the global health at the Council on Foreign Relations Dr. Luciana Borio, among 13 other members.

When it comes to Veteran Affairs, former South Bend mayor and previous presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg is a possible pick, noting his service in Afghanistan.

One of the most notable contenders is Rep. Deb Haaland for the Interior department, a native New Mexican from the Laguna Pueblo tribe, who would preside over millions of acres of Native land.

Former Alabama Senator Doug Jones is in consideration for Attorney General, replacing Bill Bar from the Trump administration.

Already nominated positions include seasoned politicians, such as John Kerry for Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and Janet Yellen for Secretary of the Treasury.

For Secretary of Defense, Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III has been nominated and on the path to become the first Black person to lead the Pentagon if confirmed.

Nominated for the position of Secretary of Health and Human Services is Xavier Becerra, a staunch advocate for health care who will be tasked with battling COVID-19 in the US.

Nominated for U.N. Ambassador is Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who brings over 35 years of foreign affairs experience to the U.N. table.

One of the more important nominations of Biden’s cabinet is that of Secretary of Homeland Security.

Alejandro N. Mayorkas is the first Latino nominated to the position, tasked with attempting to dismantle Trump’s egregious immigration policies, from the Remain in Mexico policy to child separation.

Loretto senior Mariacatalina Villarreal said, “I believe the only way Biden and his team will be able to reverse previous policies will be if majority of office holders are democratic.”

Although there are dozens of more appointments and more to come in the future, these are the most impactful, as Biden’s agenda plans to undo extreme policies implemented by the previous administration.

As Inauguration day nears on January 20, President-elect Joe Biden’s cabinet will become more definitive, narrowing the large diverse list of possible candidates, all while battling a lame-duck president and his supporters who refuses to concede the election.