What will be the new President's priorities? How will he deal with Congress? Hours after the election U.S.News & World Report put such questions to him. Here are his replies.

Governor Reagan, what were the American voters saying in electing you President?
I think they were saying that they wanted a change, that they were dissatisfied with the kind of government they have been getting. I think they were saying that they want inflation brought under control, that they want jobs and tax cuts, that they want a strong America and a strong American foreign policy, that they want less government interference in their lives.

What will be your top domestic priority when you take office on January 20?
My top domestic priority will be to bring inflation under control.

In foreign affairs, what will you set out to do first?
I want to reassure our allies that they can trust us to live up to our commitments. I want to re-establish the United States as a leader of the free world. And I want to make certain that the entire world understands that peace is our first priority.

What attributes will you look for in your top appointees? Will there be any Democrats among them?
I will pick the most-able people I can find to man a Reagan administration. I want them to be strong enough to resist the pressures of the Washington bureaucracy and to carry out the policies that we together agree are the best for the country. I am not ruling Democrats out.

I am looking for competence and agreement on what must be done. What party label a person carries is secondary. I hope to begin naming cabinet members by late November or early December.

Will you try to get your administration off to a fast start with a rapid-fire series of executive orders and proposals to Congress?
I'm planning on a series of executive orders, where those are appropriate, particularly to get government off the backs of business and individuals. We will have a series of proposals to send to Congress very shortly after I am inaugurated.

Now that Republicans have gained control of the Senate and increased their strength in the House, do you think you will have more success in dealing with Congress than recent Presidents?
I'm looking forward to working with the Congress. I know what it is to work with an opposition legislature, and I think I can do the same at the national level. The results of Tuesday's election will make working with both houses much easier than I had hoped. I'm looking forward to strong support in the Senate, and even in the House, although I know it will be a little more difficult there.

How do you expect to stamp the Reagan imprint on a federal bureaucracy that seems to have a life and a mind of its own?
I believe strong cabinet members can have an effect on the bureaucracy. In California, my cabinet was directed to use each department to carry out administration policy. Cabinet members were my representatives in their departments; they were not, as is too often the case, ambassadors from the department to the chief executive. I think this approach can work at the national level as well as at the state level.

What will be the major difference between your administration and that of President Carter?
I think we will have to wait and see what the difference between my administration and President Carter's will be. I would rather be measured by efforts and our successes than by any pronouncements I make at this time.