All The President's Women and Men

As the knock-down drag-out race for the Democratic presidential nomination wears on, LGBT political insiders have begun speculating about possible administration gigs. If Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton goes on to win in November, who might the new president tap for high-level appointments or key White House staff? The Advocate offers a sneak peek at a few of the contenders for both camps -- and a couple of unaffiliated talents either candidate may draft.

OBAMA'S POTENTIAL PICKS

Steve Hildebrand, political strategist 

Campaign role: deputy national campaign manager 

A longtime confidant of former Senate majority leader Tom Daschle and an early Obama booster, Hildebrand was Midwest political director for the Democratic National Committee and political director for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. In 2005 he launched a consulting firm with politico Paul Tewes.

Jeremy Bernard and Rufus Gifford, cofounders, B+G Associates 

Campaign role: financial consultants 

This duo oversees fund-raising for Obama in California. Bernard worked on Bill Clinton’s first presidential campaign and was a delegate to the 1996, 2000, and 2004 Democratic National Conventions and will be there this year; Gifford is a former movie industry executive who raised $30 million as the DNC’s deputy finance director for western states during John Kerry’s 2004 campaign.

Matt Nosanchuk, counsel to Sen. Bill Nelson 

Campaign role: convener of Obama’s LGBT Policy Committee, member of his National LGBTLeadership Council

Before working in the Senate, Nosanchuk was a senior policy fellow for Third Way, founding the progressive think tank’s gay equality initiative. He also had stints at the House Judiciary Committee and the Justice Department.

Stampp Corbin, technology executive and entrepreneur 

Campaign role: member of National LGBT Leadership Council 

Corbin’s history with Obama dates back to his Chicago childhood, when he and Michelle Obama were schoolmates; years later, the three attended Harvard together. The founder of technology firms RetroBox and Resource One, Corbin was a national adviser to the Small Business Administration under President Clinton.

Tobias Wolff, University of Pennsylvania law professor 

Campaign role: chair of Obama’s LGBT Policy Committee 

Wolff is an expert on civil procedure and constitutional law who has consulted on major class action proceedings and is on the executive board of the Equal Justice Society. Before his academic career, he was a litigator at the blue-chip firm Paul, Weiss.

Also in the running…

Eric Stern, associate director, career development, University of California, Berkeley, law school 

Stern has been executive director of National Stonewall Democrats and head of the DNC’s LGBT outreach program. Before endorsing Obama he was an adviser to John Edwards’s campaign.

David Mixner, political strategist and activist 

Mixner, an unofficial adviser to elected officials and business leaders on domestic and foreign policy for decades, became a prominent Obama supporter after Edwards bowed out. He was national chairman for Rep. Richard Gephardt’s 2004 presidential campaign and a key player in Bill Clinton’s first White House run.

Ben LaBolt, campaign spokesman 

Before joining the campaign, LaBolt worked in Obama’s Senate office, and he’s a former aide to Democratic congresswoman Jan Schakowsky of Illinois. He also put in time on Howard Dean’s 2004 campaign and at the DNC.

Kevin Jennings, executive director, Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network 

Jennings, a former high school history teacher, founded GLSEN in 1990.