For some politicians, the rise to political power is meteoric and surprising. Donald Trump’s sudden ascent from conspiracy-theory-peddling reality TV host to the presidency is undoubtedly the most notable example of this phenomenon,

Gov. Josh Stein’s cabinet appointees were sworn into office Monday, taking the reins of North Carolina government. Stein, a Democrat who formerly served as attorney general, was sworn into office on New Year’s Day.

▪ Seth Dearmin, chief of staff: Stein is keeping his chief of staff from the N.C. Department of Justice, when Stein was attorney general. Dearmin had been chief of staff at DOJ since 2017, and before that ran Stein’s 2016 attorney general campaign.

Several other cabinet members will have separate swearing-in ceremonies. Gabe Esparza, who will head the Department of Administration, will be sworn in on Jan. 11. Dev Sangvai, who will lead the Department of Health and Human Services, is expected to be sworn in on Jan. 12.

As Josh Stein settles into his new role as North Carolina's next governor, he'll have cabinet members who will serve the state by leading departments. Gabriel J. Esparza will be the state’s first Latino cabinet member, the Stein transition team said, and will head the Department of Administration.

Josh Stein is the governor of North Carolina, pledging his oath on Wednesday morning alongside his wife Anna. Stein, 58, succeeds 67-year-old Roy Cooper and continues the pattern of all but three men holding the position being Democrats since 1900.

Stein announced an executive order to temporarily waive federal limits on the amount of time drivers transporting propane and other heating fuels can be on the road.