Catalina Camia

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Now that Attorney General Eric Holder has announced he will resign, the challenging task of finding a replacement who can win Senate confirmation begins for President Obama.

Holder, an Obama confidant and original Cabinet member, said Thursday he will depart the Justice Department as soon as his successor is confirmed.

A look at some possible replacements being mentioned:

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick: A close friend of President Obama, Patrick is not running for re-election in November. He has long been mentioned as a possible replacement for Holder. Patrick was chief of the Justice Department's civil rights division under Bill Clinton. As governor, Patrick won raves for his handling of the Boston Marathon bombing and its aftermath. Patrick said Thursday that attorney general is "an enormously important job but it's not one for me right now."

Donald Verrilli: He is currently U.S. solicitor general, arguing the administration's legal positions before the Supreme Court. Verrilli previously served as deputy counsel to Obama and was an associate deputy attorney general at the Justice Department.

Kamala Harris: The California attorney general has long been mentioned as a possible candidate for U.S. Senate or governor. She is the first female, first African-American and first Asian-American attorney general in the state. Obama created a stir when he said last year that Harris is "by far, the best looking attorney general." She is running for re-election in November, and issued a statement Thursday indicating she is not interested in the AG spot. "I am honored to even be mentioned, but intend to continue my work for the people of California as attorney general," she said.

Kathryn Ruemmler: She departed as White House counsel last year. Obama told the New York Times that he deeply valued Ruemmler for "her smarts, her judgment and her wit." She had worked for the White House since the start of Obama's tenure, starting as principal associate deputy attorney general — the third-ranking position at the Justice Department.

Preet Bharara: As U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, Bharara prosecutes some of the nation's high-profile terrorism and Wall Street cases. Since taking office in 2009, his U.S. attorney's office has been involved in cases regarding the Bernie Madoff scandal and Osama bin Laden's son in law. Bharara's office has cracked down on insider trading and successfully prosecuted a string of cases.

Loretta Lynch: As U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Lynch is the top federal prosecutor for Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island. Her office led the investigation into Rep. Michael Grimm, R-N.Y., resulting in tax evasion and other charges. Lynch also served as U.S. attorney from 1991 to 2001 in the Clinton administration.

Amy Klobuchar: The senior senator from Minnesota presumably would have an easier time getting confirmed by her colleagues. Before she was elected to the Senate in 2006, Klobuchar was the Hennepin County attorney.

Janet Napolitano: The former Homeland Security secretary and governor was Arizona's attorney general from 1999 to 2002. She currently serves as president of the University of California system.



Robert Mueller: The respected lawyer and specialist in white-collar crime became FBI director a week before the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Mueller went on to serve both George W. Bush and Obama. Currently in private law practice, Mueller was recently tapped to lead the NFL's investigation into the Ray Rice domestic violence incident.

Sheldon Whitehouse: Senator from Rhode Island has been in Washington since 2007 and is a Judiciary Committee member. He is a former U.S. attorney and Rhode Island attorney general. Whitehouse said Thursday it would be a "great honor" to be considered for the job, but his "heart's desire is representing Rhode Island."



Contributing: David Jackson at the United Nations.Follow @ccamia on Twitter.