Washington ? While Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is near the top of President Barack Obama’s list of candidates to head the Health and Human Services Department, other candidates, including former Clinton White House chief of staff John Podesta, remain in the mix. A decision is not imminent, a senior administration official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private administration deliberations.

A Kansas Democrat close to Sebelius said she had not spoken about the post in recent days but appeared to remain a strong contender. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not officially authorized to speak for the governor.

Sebelius would be Obama’s second choice for the slot. Former Sen. Tom Daschle had to withdraw his name amid an admission he had not paid all his taxes, including on a car and driver, since leaving Congress as a Democratic leader.

The loss of Daschle has many worried about the fate of any quick action on health care reform, one of Obama’s top early priorities and a complex legislative effort that seemed to require the heft of someone like Daschle to push it through. As a result, most believed Obama needed to move quickly to replace Daschle, and yet the White House was so committed to that pick that it had little in the way of a backup list when he dropped out.

It took Obama almost a month to find a new commerce secretary nominee when his first pick dropped out. He named GOP Sen. Judd Gregg last week, the same day Daschle withdrew, to replace New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who had stepped aside for the post in early January amid a grand jury investigation into a state contract awarded to his political donors.

Those close to the White House also mentioned Podesta as a candidate. The leader of Obama’s transition team and head of the liberal think tank Center for American Progress, he was the fourth and final chief of staff to serve President Bill Clinton.

Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen was another candidate, although some advocacy groups were lining up to oppose the Democratic governor.