With Jan Brewer’s transition team expected to be announced Friday, the tasks of shifting, shuffling and hiring 140 government workers to serve the soon-to-be governor are underway.

All this will be going on as President-elect Barack Obama continues his transition to power, a process quite similar to what will happen in Arizona, said Doug Cole, senior vice president of government affairs at HighGround, a public affairs firm working with Brewer on the transition.

“This is what’s going on in Chicago,” Cole said. “But on a lot smaller scale.”

After the president’s inauguration and Senate confirmation of Gov. Janet Napolitano as secretary of homeland security, Brewer would be sworn in as Arizona’s fourth female governor.

Jeanine L’Ecuyer, a spokeswoman for the governor, said Congress will most likely move quickly toward Napolitano’s confirmation. Once this confirmation occurs, she said, Napolitano will submit her resignation as governor of Arizona.

When her transition team is announced, Brewer will also appoint her chief of staff. From there, the transition team’s first priority will be to get the top positions in governor’s office filled, Cole said.

The transition team will look at resumes and identify people who are qualified for these positions and recommend them to the governor.

“And believe me, the resumes are coming in fast and furious,” Cole said. “These are the governor’s closest advisers. They are people the governor should be comfortable with, people the governor knows and trusts.”

This is the third governor’s transition Cole has been a part of. He said transitions of power are a normal part of the political process and are run by people who are volunteering their time and are experienced with the process.

But, he said, this transition is a little different because the office is transitioning between political parties as well. However, there is still a big turnover during any gubernatorial transition of power, Cole said.

“When there is a change of party, there are lot more moving parts,” Cole said.

With the new administration and the new ideology, a number of new people will be hired to serve the governor. Many people will be out of a job, but Cole and L'Ecuyer said it is a part of working for an elected official.

“The reality is you know at some point the term is going end. This time it came sooner than anticipated,” L'Ecuyer said. “There’s been speculation and rumors for over a year that she might be tapped. I don’t think anyone was surprised.”

State Rep. Ed Ableser, D-Tempe, said the transition should be seamless, but the future governor will have a huge learning curve dealing with a $9 billion budget. Like Brewer filling Napolitano’s seat in the governor’s office, Ableser filled Harry Mitchell’s state Senate seat when Mitchell decided to run for U.S. Senate.

“It was a huge learning curve for me as well, but it’s about the relationships you form on the Democratic and Republican side,” Ableser said. “People were very cordial and respectful, and I’m not worried about this transition.”

Sue Gerard, a member of the Maricopa County Special Health Care District board of directors, said the economic situation could make the transition difficult and make it hard for people to find jobs once the transition occurs. Bureaucrats will have a big hand in keeping the transition smooth, she said.

“The agencies are not given enough credit for what they do. It’s because of the bureaucrats the public doesn’t notice the transition,” Gerard said. “When you have economic turmoil, you need to have your government institutions stable.”

Reach the reporter at philip.haldiman@asu.edu.