Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Rahm Emanuel (Ill.) announced Monday that he has filled out the committee’s senior staff roster for the 2006 cycle.

Emanuel called the team “some of the strongest political talent in the business.”

Democrats are seeking to make up a 15-seat difference in the House in November 2006, after losing ground the previous two cycles.

Joining Executive Director John Lapp, who was appointed in January, in heading up the committee’s administrative duties will be Chief Operating Officer Ann Marie Habershaw and Deputy Executive Director Brian Wolff.

Habershaw and Wolff are among a handful of senior staff holdovers from the 2004 cycle, when the committee was led by Rep. Robert Matsui (Calif.), who died Jan. 1.

Habershaw, who held the same title last cycle, first joined the committee’s staff as chief financial officer in 2001, after working at EMILY’s List for six years.

Wolff, meanwhile, has a new title but will continue to handle all of his previous duties as the committee’s national finance director. He has been a chief fundraiser for Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and will continue serving as the political director for her political action committee.

Wolff’s past political experience includes stints with former Sen. David Pryor (D-Ark.), Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), then-President Bill Clinton and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.).

New to the committee’s staff this cycle are Political Director Dave Hamrick, Campaign Director Alixandria Wade and Research Director Christina Reynolds.

Hamrick comes to the committee from a stint last cycle as coordinated campaign director at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. He held the same title during the 2002 cycle, when he did field and American Indian get-out-the-vote programs for Sen. Tim Johnson’s (D-S.D.) successful re-election bid.

Hamrick has previously worked for Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner (D), Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) and for the presidential campaign of then-Vice President Al Gore.

Wade’s joins the DCCC in the newly created position of campaign director. While Hamrick will manage the day-to-day operations of the political department, including recruiting and targeting, Wade will have a broader portfolio. Among her tasks will be heading up incumbent retention efforts, including overseeing the DCCC’s Frontline program, and outreach to Democratic constituencies.

Wade has been chief of staff to Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) since 2000, taking a leave of absence last cycle to work for Sen. John Kerry’s (D-Mass.) presidential primary campaign and on the Democrats’ coordinated field effort in Colorado.

Reynolds, the new research director, previously served as communications director on then-Sen. Tom Daschle’s (D-S.D.) 2004 re-election campaign. Before joining that campaign she was research director for then-Sen. John Edwards’ (D-N.C.) presidential campaign, research director during Johnson’s 2002 Senate race and deputy research director at the Democratic National Committee.

Rounding out the DCCC’s senior staff are Field Director Glenn Rushing, Communications Director Greg Speed and Member Services Director Beverly Gilyard — all of whom are keeping their same jobs from last cycle.

Rushing, a chief of staff to then-Rep. Ronnie Shows (D-Miss.), has been with the committee since 2003. His political background includes varied experience working for Mississippi Democrats and organizations as well as stints on Clinton’s 1992 and 1996 presidential campaigns.

Speed will continue to serve as communications director, a position he assumed in August 2004. Prior to joining the DCCC in 2003, Speed was press secretary to then-Rep. Martin Frost (D-Texas) and served as chief spokesman for IMPAC 2000, Democrats’ national redistricting project during the 2002 cycle.

Gilyard has been at the DCCC since June 2003. In addition to previous campaign stints, she has worked on Capitol Hill for Reps. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.) and Steny Hoyer (D-Md.).