U.S. -- After the party in Chicago the ranks of an Obama administration may be filled with some New Yorkers in the mix even if Hillary Clinton ended up an also-ran.

For starters, the Wall Street mess has word Obama could tap as Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithne, now head of New York's Federal Reserve Bank. One other choice is Paul Volcker, who served as Fed Chair in the Carter and Reagan administrations.

Another nod to the past is environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who may be picked as head of the Environmental Protection Agency. His uncle backed Obama. So did his cousin Caroline, reportedly being looked at for U.N. representative.

Also possibilities in his administration are attorney Jeh Johnson, former New School dean Fred Hochberg, health union official Patrick Gaspard and Obama communications staffer Blake Zeff. Officially, the Obama campaign is keeping quiet.

One New Yorker not destined for an Obama administration still may see her star rise over the next four years. After Hillary Clinton lost a bitter nomination, she stumped repeatedly for the ticket. And according to backer Congressman Charles Rangel, she's burnished her star power in the Senate.

"In American politics, even losers can become winners when some people really get to know them. So some people may have known the first lady, and certainly in the state of New York, they've known Senator Clinton, but now the whole knows her. And now Bill Clinton is known as Senator Clinton's husband," the Congressman said.

Clinton could be tapped to shepherd universal health through Congress. But supporters are cautious to dub her the Senate's new lioness. Though ill with cancer, Ted Kennedy still has the title of the lion.

But there are parallels. After Kennedy lost the Democratic nomination to Jimmy Carter, he returned to the Senate and saw his stature grow.