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May 19, 2022

May 19, 2022

In Focus This Week

The Elections Group publishes storytelling guide for election officials
Seeks input on upcoming communications work

By Chris Piper, chief operating officer
The Elections Group

In 2021, Virginia was one of two states to hold Gubernatorial elections, and as the state’s chief election official, I knew all eyes were going to be focused on us. Following 2020 and the many lessons learned from it, we decided to attack the communications issue head on to reassure the public of the security and trustworthiness of our elections.

Virginia election administrators authored op-eds in local publications touting the integrity of the election system. We produced radio ads and commercials. Across the country, many election offices would like to engage in similar efforts but do not have the resources. Election officials need communications support.

I am excited to announce that The Elections Group is releasing the first in a series of elections communications related materials for an ongoing communication support project. Telling Our Story: An Elections Communication Guide, written by former National Public Radio (NPR) correspondent Pam Fessler, is now available.

With more than 20 years of experience reporting on voting and elections, Pam brings an unmatched level of expertise in telling the stories that listeners can relate to, a strategy from which elections officials can benefit.

The guide provides simple and proven methods for countering misinformation; educating voters; working with the media; and – perhaps most important of all – increasing Americans’ overall trust, respect and enthusiasm for our election system and the tens of thousands of people who make it work. Examples include work being done by election administrators  that have been effective without big investments of time or money, both of which are in short supply.

Some strategies  include writing op-eds or articles, meeting directly with concerned citizens, and proactively reaching out to media in your area covering voting and elections. These are simple – yet effective – strategies to engage voters to reinvigorate their trust in elections.

Election administrators strive to ensure processes and documentation are transparent and accessible to candidates, political parties and other observers. They also hoped not to be the story, believing that they did their job well if no one talked about the process or the people administering it.

But following 2020, election administrators can no longer be silent – they must tell their story.

Telling Our Story is the first offering in a series of communications products The Elections Group is producing. Be on the lookout this summer for items such as customizable printed posters, infographics and public-facing handouts; an election video series; scripts and presentation material for community and stakeholder engagement; and guidance on producing professional-looking videos of election processes.

Our team would love to hear from you on what your office needs to help tell your story. We’ve set up a form to get your feedback: https://airtable.com/shr9hTBFgARXldrW0.

Chris Piper is the chief operating officer of The Elections Group. He previously served as the commissioner of the Virginia Department of Elections.

 

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Primary Updates

Voters in five states cast ballots in 2022 primaries
Isolated issues in each state, but no major statewide problems

By M. Mindy Moretti
electionline.org

Five states  — Idaho, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oregon and Pennsylvania — held their primaries this week. Overall, there were not that many issues although counties in Oregon and Pennsylvania both suffered ballot printing issues.

Here’s a brief look at how Tuesday went in each state.

Idaho: It was a pretty normal Election Day in the Gem State. There were some issues though. IN Bonner County, campaigning and signs near a number of polling places prompted complaints to the county clerk’s office. At some precincts in Canyon County, wait times on Election Day stretched on for more than 45 minutes. At least one losing candidate complained about election shenanigans. The complaint involved the impact Democrats switching to the Republican party in order to vote in the primary may have had, not any malfeasance on behalf of elections officials. A polling places in schools in Blaine County were temporarily put on lockdown when there were reports of shots fired at another school. Twin Falls County saw a smooth election day. Political science students at the College of Southern Idaho served as poll workers on Tuesday and learned a thing or two about who comes out to vote. One student says this is his second time working the polls. He says it is eye-opening as to what types of people show up to the polls. “It’s the older people,” said Taylor Carnell, one of the poll workers. “And I think what’s really nice is when we get those younger people in here to vote. We’re college students, we come in and we work the elections, I think that’s what’s really important is every demographic participating in these processes.” And Ada County Clerk Phil McGrane won the Republican nomination for secretary of state. He will face Democrat Shawn Keenan, who ran unopposed,  in November.

Kentucky: There were some minor issues in the Bluegrass State on Tuesday, but most of those were attributed to human error “We’re talking about one precinct here or there, out of the entire state of almost 4,000 precincts, had an issue with one poll worker making a mistake. But nothing systemic,” explained Secretary of State Michael Adams. In McCracken County, some voters were confused by redistricting, despite getting postcards with the new information in advance of the election. In Fayette County, 71 ballots were given out incorrectly at one polling location. The Kentucky Attorney General’s election hotline received complaints about electioneering in Madison County. It was relatively smooth sailing in Jefferson County although adjustments had to be made when some poll workers failed to show up. There were few problems reported in Christian and Trigg Counties. Issues with a voting machine in one Boone County precinct forced voters to use paper ballots and the county to take extra steps to process those ballots. “Transparency, election integrity is the most important thing for any election,” Boone County Clerk Justin Crigler said. “We need the citizens of being coming to the elections are fair, honest and secure. So we took numerous steps, there’ll be no questions whatsoever.” This was also the first election that voters could cast a ballot early without an excuse. Approximately 116,000 Kentuckians took advantage of it. Adams says he hopes to see those numbers go up in future elections. “I think it’s a long needed improvement, “Adams said. “Other states, including our neighboring states, long ago made voting easier and we were stuck in a model from 1891.”

North Carolina: With record-setting early voting numbers and primary day turnout higher than it was in 2018 it was still a smooth election day in the Tarheel State. North Carolina State Board of Elections Executive Director Karen Brinson Bell said that the day had gone smoothly and that officials did all they could to provide a secure and accurate election. “What we want to make sure is voters know the story behind what happens in elections to increase our transparency. That’s why North Carolinians will find the most robust data available for public consumption on our state website of any state elections office is my understanding,” Bell said. Surry County officials had been concerned about potential conflicts due to months of harassment at county board meetings, but fortunately that did not pan out on primary day. “It has been fantastic,” said Michella Huff, Surry County’s elections director. “We’ve had no real incidents, no threats, no anything.” Mecklenburg County’s website went down around 9:45pm and the county had to refer people to the state site for results.

Oregon: As a long-time vote-by-mail state, Oregon doesn’t usually make too many headlines on Election Day. And while that remained the case for most of Oregon’s 36 counties, there were a few issues. A U.S. Postal Service mail collection box was stolen in Southeast Portland earlier this month and Multnomah County Elections officials are urged voters to contact them immediately if they used it. At least two people reached out to the county when they didn’t receive any notifications about the status of their ballots from the county’s ballot tracking system. While elections officials had worried about low turnout in the weeks leading up to the primary according to the secretary of state’s office turnout surged in the final two days of voting. Marion County experienced problems reporting election results to the state Tuesday night. Marion County Clerk Bill Burgess said county officials missed a step in posting a file to the Secretary of State’s website. While county election results were posted on its own website soon after 8 p.m., those results were not included as part of the larger state tallies until later Tuesday night. And in Clackamas County, a printing error on ballot barcodes will have the county processing and counting ballots well into next week. “We are talking about working this weekend, and I plan to do that, but we need enough staff to do that,” County Clerk Sherry Hall said. “I’m not sure if I can force them to work or if they have to be willing.” The county chair is diverting 200 county employees who volunteered to help process the ballots. They’ll be working from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day, each taking six-hour shifts until the job is done. Additionally, state officials have reached out to Yamhill and Washington counties about bringing in elections workers who are trained to use the same system as Clackamas County. The county has until certification day, June 13, to fully reprocess the misprinted ballots and close out the election results.

Pennsylvania: The Commonwealth has 67 counties and it’s safe to say that the majority of the counties had a relatively smooth sailing primary day. However, a small percentage of counties had issues and particularly in Berks and Lancaster counties. The county commission in Elk County was so appreciative of the work done by the elections office they thanked them publicly. In Berks County, day long issues with the county’s new e-poll books forced the Berks County Court of Common Pleas has issued an order extending poll hours for all Berks County precincts until 9 p.m. Lancaster County will continue to process and count ballots after a printing error on mail ballots caused issues. Christa Miller, the chief elections clerk in Lancaster County, her staff and elections volunteers, are responsible for remarking 16,000 ballots that wouldn’t scan. “I want them to know that we’re doing it as fast as we can, but the fastness is not our first priority. Accuracy and making sure that every single ballot counts. We will get them counted. Unfortunately, we’ve done this before, but it worked, and we know how to do this. We’re good at it,” said Miller. A number of polling places in Allegheny County reported ballot shortages. Officials in Luzerne County reported routine issues. In correct voting machines were sent to one precinct on Delaware County. Results were delayed in Mercer County after Director of Voter Registration and Elections Thad Hall had to personally trave to three precincts to pick up thumb drives that had been left in voting machines. With all the rhetoric leading up to the election, there was fortunately only one reported incident of violence towards elections officials. In a polling place in Castle Shannon, a man was arrested for harassing and intimidating poll workers. According to police reports, David Huff, 57, was yelling at and filming voters, police said. Voting temporarily stopped because of Huff’s erratic behavior, the complaint states. As happens somewhere every election day, a locked door in Lehigh County, caused a polling place to open late when no one could access the building. Butler County elections officials reported no problems with new polling places following redistricting.  Allegheny County poll worker Sara Coban has worked her last election after serving at the polls for 68 years. “I’ll be 94 years old in June, and I think it’s high time that I hang it up and start living our life,” Coban said. Elections are serious business but that doesn’t’ mean you can’t have some fun and that’s exactly what Amy Michalic, a judge of elections has done at her Monongahela County polling place. Each election she chooses a theme—this week it was the tropics—and poll workers can dress accordingly and the polling place is decorated to fit the theme. “It makes voting a cheerful event again with the way the world has become,” Michalic said. “We had to bring some fun back. How can you be in a bad mood when you come in and you see these smiling faces?”

 

Election News This Week

Cost of Conducting Elections: The MIT Election & Science Data Lab, in conduction with the National Institute for Civil Discourse have released a new report on “The Cost of Conducting Elections.”  While financial support for election administration has traditionally been considered a province of state and local governments alone, the 2000 election alerted the public that shortcomings in and underfunding of election administration could have national — if not international — ramifications. Since then, the federal government has been called on to help state and local election officials shoulder some of the financial burdens of conducting elections, but until now, the federal government has served as a reactive insurer of last resort. Marshaling the resources needed to conduct the 2020 election brought this question to the fore: Is it time for the federal government to change this approach to supporting elections by partnering with state and local governments to ensure that elections are accessible and secure for all?

Move to Vote Centers: DuPage County will become the first county in Illinois to implement vote centers. The county will allow voters to cast their ballots at any of the 263 polling places open on Election Day. Clerk Jean Kaczmarek told the Chicago Tribune that DuPage voters may cast their primary ballot on June 28 at any polling location, whether it’s in their home precinct, near their job or school, or anywhere else, because new equipment allows individualized ballots to be printed on demand. From talking with election judges and poll watchers, Kaczmarek said voters often show up at the wrong location, in part because a handful of polling places change each election.  That was especially true during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when some locations declined to serve as polling places, she said. “DuPage voters will no longer be turned away on Election Day for being in the wrong polling place in the county,” Kaczmarek said. The only residents not able to take advantage of this are those in Naperville who live in Will County. Kaczmarek said she’s gratified the county is able to offer so many ways to vote. “I want the people of DuPage County to have so many voting options that they’re practically tripping over them,” she said.

Lost in Translation: Gwinnett County is the only Sec. 203 county in the state of Georgia. The county has been sending out elections in both Spanish and English and that’s been raising concerns among voters. It seems that some voters think “Hogar de [insert last name here]” is a potentially fraudulent voter instead of Spanish for Household of [insert last name here]. “The Gwinnett County Board of Elections and Registration sent out mailers to Gwinnett voters addressed to ‘Household of / Hogar de,’” said Ari Schaffer, chief of staff at the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office. “Apparently, a significant number of people are reading that and thinking someone by the name of Hogar De is fraudulently registered at their home, rather than realizing hogar de is just the Spanish translation of ‘household of.’ Because it’s Gwinnett, all election mailing has to be in Spanish as well (by federal law).”

This and That: Geneve County, Alabama has been able to replace all of its voting equipment that was lost in a fire late last year.  The Yolo County, California elections office will be holding daily Zoom meetings in different languages to inform voters about the process and different ways to fill out and deliver ballots. The St. Landry Parish, Louisiana council has given initial approval to significantly expand the number of voting precincts. The move also will restore polling places that were relocated in 2021, causing voter concern. A ballot measure to bring open primaries and ranked choice voting to Nevada has gathered enough signatures to make the November ballot. The Stutsman County, North Dakota commission has approved a pay increase for poll workers for the upcoming June 14th primary. The Laurens County, South Carolina Voter Registration and Elections Office is moving out of the basement of the historic county courthouse to a new all-in-one space. The Williamson County, Tennessee election commission conducted its first-ever post-election audit this week and found 100% accuracy. Bexar County, Texas is celebrating a major reduction of rejected ballots for the May 7 election than the March 1 primary. Weber County, Utah will be hosting an “Election Integrity Night” where elections officials will field questions from the public about the voting and ballot-counting process and provide a tour of the elections office.

Early Voting Update: At press time, Early Voting was a go to run in the 147th Preakness Stakes on May 21. Post time is at approximately 6:50 p.m. Currently at 7-2, Early Voting is a betting favorite along with Epicenter (6-5) and Secret Oath (9-2). Early Voting drew the 5 post position which is in the middle of the 9-horse field. The Preakness is the shortest of the Triple Crown races at only 1 3/16 miles and some expect Early Voting will take an early lead, but just like early voting turnout, what that means for the entire race is anyone’s guess. We hate betting against a filly (Secret Oath), but as you can imagine our money (if DC had OTB) is on Early Voting on Saturday.

Personnel News: Wyoming Secretary of State Ed Buchanan has announced that he will not seek a second full term. Wyoming Senate President Dan Dockstader and Rep. Chuck Gray have announced their candidacy for secretary of state.  Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee has announced her resignation. Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed Rep. Cord Byrd to replace her. Laramie County, Wyoming Clerk Debra Lee announced her bid for re-election. Dr. Desi Roberts has been appointed the new elections administrator for Bell County, Texas. Carlene Hamlin has retired as the South Hadley, Massachusetts clerk. Jeanna Repass has announced her candidacy for the Democratic nomination for Kansas secretary of state.  Beth Thompson, administrator for Hunterdon County’s Board of Elections, was recognized with the New Jersey Association of Counties’ (NJAC) County Service Award. Jill Nowak is retiring as the Manistee County, Michigan clerk.

Legislative Updates

Federal Legislation: Senate Rules Committee Chairwoman Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) introduced a bill to provide $20 billion in federal funding to help states and localities to administer elections, train poll workers and eliminate barriers to voting. The legislation, which is co-sponsored by nine other Senate Democrats, would secure election infrastructure by upgrading voting equipment and registration systems, help recruit and train nonpartisan election officials and poll workers, protect election officials from threats and increase ballot access for minorities, voters with disabilities and those who live overseas or on Indian lands. “Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy, but in recent years we have seen a barrage of threats seeking to undermine our elections,” said Klobuchar. “It is critical that we respond to these threats head-on by ensuring that state and local governments have the resources needed to strengthen the administration of our elections, protect election officials on the frontlines, and provide all eligible voters with the opportunity to make their voices heard,” she said.

Arizona: The Arizona House has approved several election bills in bipartisan votes. The measures approved, which have all already passed the Senate, make changes to election procedures. One would raise the threshold for triggering an automatic recount in close elections. Another would require the Game and Fish Department to hand out voter registration links or forms when people sign up for hunting and fishing licenses. A third bill aims to requires court clerks to report new felony convictions monthly so voter registrations can be canceled. And a fifth directs county election officials to count and publicly report the number of uncounted early ballots on election night, if practical.  Meanwhile, lawmakers voted down a handful of bills that were universally opposed by Democrats, in part because there weren’t enough Republican lawmakers on hand to pass bills without Democratic votes. One failed bill would allow people to carry their mail ballot to a polling place, show identification and have their ballot tabulated on the spot as if they had voted in person. Democrats said not all counties have the technology to do that, so the bill risks creating disparate procedures across the state.  Another failed bill would make it a felony to forward a mail ballot to someone known to be registered to vote in another state.

Missouri: Two years after Missouri’s Supreme Court struck down a similar measure, lawmakers passed a bill requiring residents to have photo identification to cast a ballot. The requirement, part of a larger elections bill, passed the House on a party-line 97-47 vote. In addition to requiring photo ID, the bill allows Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, a Republican, to review the list of registered voters in any jurisdiction. Electronic voting machines will be banned after 2024, except in cases where a voter with a disability cannot use a paper ballot. Those machines, however, would be required to have a paper trail for a potential election review. In addition, local election authorities can no longer accept funding from outside organizations. Missouri lawmakers also stripped all of the state’s provisions that made it easier for individuals to vote during the early days of the pandemic. Democrats were able to secure some of their election-related priorities, including a two-week window for no-reason absentee voting.

New Hampshire: A bill that would require new voters in the state who register at the polls without identification to use a provisional ballot is headed to the desk of Gov. Chris Sununu. The GOP-led State Senate endorsed the House’s version of SB 418 along party lines. Under the bill, new voters in the state who register without proper identification would use a marked provisional ballot. If those voters failed to then provide proof of identity to the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s office within 7 days, their ballots would be scrubbed and final vote tallies updated. Warren Sen. Bob Giuda, a sponsor of the bill, predicted its effect will be minimal. Sununu had initially signaled opposition to the bill, in part because affidavit ballots could delay final election results by more than a week in a close race. He recently told reporters he is now comfortable with the plan, which has been narrowed to apply only to people who are registering to vote in New Hampshire for the first time. The measure has the support of Sec. of State Dave Scanlan, but has faced criticism from some local election officials and voter advocacy groups as unnecessary. If signed into law, the measure could face a legal challenge.

New Jersey: The Assembly State and Local Government Committee advanced 10 bills last week. The legislation includes:

  • A3822 which requires county boards of elections to release a online list of the number of ballots received, the number of ballots counted, and the number of ballots left to be counted, a tabulation which would be updated daily. The Secretary of State’s office would aggregate those numbers and list them on its own website – a significant advancement for a state that has long delegated its election reporting to county governments. Additionally county boards of election would be permitted to begin processing and counting mail-in ballots five days before the election, potentially allowing for a much more efficient counting process. And second, postmarked mail-in ballots would have to be received within three days after Election Day, rather than six. Another shift made by the bill would be to move the deadline for printing mail-in ballots from 50 days before the election to 45 days, which some testifiers noted could conflict with federal law about mailing ballots to overseas voters. Finally, the bill would remove the ability of voters to change their partisan registration at the Motor Vehicle Commission, which has some voter registration systems in place through automatic voter registration, and would allow county boards of election to establish schedules for picking up mail-in ballots from ballot drop boxes.
  • A3819 under a voter on the permanent vote-by-mail lists who does not vote in four consecutive general elections would be removed from the permanent list and be notified by mail of their removal. (Importantly, the voter would remain on the voter rolls, just not on the mail-in list.) Additionally, if a voter indicates they want their vote-by-mail ballot to be delivered to a secondary address – common among college students, for example – but two mail-in ballots in a row are returned or undeliverable, future mail-in ballots will be sent to the voter’s primary address instead, again with a notification by mail of the change. The bill also includes a $10 million education campaign to inform voters of the new rules.
  • A3817 would require early and absentee votes to be counted by election district, rather than just by municipality. Currently, all Election Day votes are broken out into highly detailed district-level detail but other votes are lumped together at the municipality level, making it impossible to precisely determine detailed election results in elections with high rates of early and absentee voting.
  • A3820 would require independent voters wishing to vote in closed primaries to to send a separate request for a partisan ballot or go to the polls in-person and cast a provisional ballot. Also included in the bill are provisions to send notifications to those unaffiliated voters informing them of how to affiliate with a party and to require that absentee ballot envelopes be designed so that partisan registration is not visible from the outside.
  • A3821 would increase the accessibility of early voting and ballot drop box locations. Each county would be required to place at least 50% of its early voting locations and ballot drop boxes in municipalities that had low voter turnout rates, and at least 50% in locations accessible via public transportation.
  • A3823 would require that municipalities notify statewide voter registration authorities of death records every two weeks in the two months leading up to a statewide election, something designed to increase the security of voter rolls but that several testifiers argued could lead to valid voters being inadvertently purged. The bill would also enter the state into the Electronic Registration Information Center.
  • A1696 would expand the hours which 16- and 17-year olds are allowed to work at the polls to 5:30am to 9:30pm on Election Day only.

New York: A voter protection bill, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act of New York (NYVRA), moved for the first time last week since it was introduced in 2020. The legislation cleared the Senate elections committee and is expected to be heard next in the Senate finance committee – a sign that it may make it to the floor of the State Senate, where it would be virtually assured to pass. But the bill still faces an uphill battle in the Assembly, where supporters are less hopeful. Both chambers are led by Democratic supermajorities. The NYVRA is intended to fill gaps in the federal Voting Rights Act, which the U.S. Supreme Court has largely dismantled over the last decade. The bill would give the New York Attorney General “preclearance” authority over any proposed changes to voting in parts of the state with a history of disenfranchisement (the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan had previously been covered under the federal VRA). That authority could apply to anything from the placement of poll-sites to the provision of interpreters. The legislation would also make it easier to file lawsuits against the state or counties for violating the voting rights of protected racial, ethnic, or linguistic groups. And it contains provisions to discourage voter intimidation, require language access, and track potential rights violations.

Better training for elections workers, allowing the distribution of snacks for voters waiting in line and blocking elections commissioners from holding elected office are among the changes Democratic lawmakers in the state Senate are seeking to the administration of elections in New York state.  And key to the package of measures is a plan to overhaul the New York City Board of Elections by reducing its size and giving more power to an executive director chosen through a nationwide search.  The measures, approved in the state Senate, are meant to make improvements to local boards of election in New York that have, at times, been criticized as patronage mills for local officials. New York lawmakers in recent years have sought changes to election administration, but have to run into institutional headwinds opposed to the changes. The package of measures includes having the statewide Board of Elections develop a mandatory training plan for election commissioners and key staff at local boards. Elections commissioners would also be barred from holding elected office. Pay raises would also be approved for elections inspectors from $25 to $50.

Ohio: State Rep. Michael Skindell (D-Lakewood) recently introduced House Bill 641 which would create a permanent absentee voter list. To vote absentee under current law, voters must fill out an absentee-ballot request and send it to the board of election before each election. They will then receive a mail-in ballot that must be returned. Skindell said the list would streamline the process, which would increase voter participation. “Instead of having to remember the election and mailing in an application to get a ballot,” said Skindell, “you can be placed on a list and the board of election will send you out a ballot application before every election.” Skindell said a voter would be removed from the permanent absentee list if their registration is canceled, or if they submit a written request to be removed. And he expects any possible opposition to center around false notions that it would weaken election security.

Rhode Island: The House has approve a version a bill to allow online applications for mail ballots and eliminate the current witness/notary signature requirements to verify the identity of those who choose to vote by mail. In lieu of witnesses, the voter will need to state: “I have not and will not vote elsewhere in this election,” and “I hereby attest under the pains and penalty of perjury, that the enclosed voted ballot was cast by me, and that the signature or mark on this certifying envelope was made by me.” The proposed law would also allow early in-person voting 20 days ahead of Election Day. The legislation was approved largely along party lines 52 to 13. The House bill and the matching version in the Senate were born out of Rhode Island’s 2020 mid-pandemic attempt to make voting easier for COVID-leery voters.

South Carolina: Gov. McMaster signed legislation into law that was passed by the General Assembly which establishes early voting in South Carolina. In-person absentee voting has now been replaced with a two-week early voting period. Any voter can visit an early-voting location in their county and vote like they would at their polling place on Election Day. Additionally, the bill would establish a set number of early voting sites in each county and authorize election officials to begin examining and tabulating absentee votes prior to Election Day. The bill was approved after Senators dropped that demand, settling instead for confirmation of the state election director and a process for removing the elections board or its executive director if they fail to enforce and defend or publicly discredit state elections laws. The legislation establishes qualifications for the five commissioners, permits their removal by the governor or through a legal action filed by the House or Senate, and prohibits them from establishing emergency election regulations, like those contemplated during the 2020 election. In addition to appointing a commission chairman, the governor also would appoint a vice chairman who would be ready to take the helm should the chairman be removed, Campsen said. Both the board chairman and vice chairman would serve two-year terms. The bill also sets eligibility requirements for the executive director and limits the director’s term to four years, although a director may be reappointed with approval of the Senate.

Legal Updates

Colorado: District Court Judge Marie Avery Moses denied motions to dismiss a defamation lawsuit filed by an election systems worker against former President Donald Trump’s campaign, two of its lawyers and a handful of conservative media figures and outlets. Moses, in a 136-page decision, rejected various arguments to throw out the lawsuit filed by Eric Coomer, who was security director at the Colorado-based Dominion Voting Systems. Coomer said he faced death threats after he was baselessly accused of trying to rig the 2020 presidential election in favor of President Joe Biden. Moses wrote that “there is overwhelming evidence that an injunction would serve the public interest because the public is harmed by the spread of defamatory information.”

Florida: Leon County Circuit Judge Layne Smith issued a temporary injunction last week against a congressional redistricting plan pushed through the Legislature by Gov. Ron DeSantis, this week ordered that the ruling remain in effect while the state pursues an appeal. The state had appealed Smith’s temporary-injunction ruling to the 1st District Court of Appeal. That triggered an automatic stay, which put the ruling on hold. But Smith held a hearing Monday and sided with voting-rights groups that requested he lift the stay. With elections supervisors preparing for the Aug. 23 primary elections, Smith pointed to the possibility that an appeal would not be resolved quickly. If the stay were not vacated, that could result in supervisors using the DeSantis-backed map that Smith said violated part of the state Constitution. “It’s crunch time now, and this involves fundamental constitutional rights,” Smith said. The state plans to ask the 1st District Court of Appeal to reimpose the stay

Georgia: Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert C.I. McBurney has rejected former U.S. Sen. David Perdue’s request to inspect ballots from the November 2020 election, saying his evidence of voting fraud amounts to “conjecture and paranoia.” Perdue’s lawsuit claimed fraud had cost him a chance to defeat Democrat Jon Ossoff in November 2020. Perdue filed the lawsuit against Fulton County officials in December — more than a year after the election and four days after he launched his campaign to unseat Gov. Brian Kemp in the May 24 Republican primary. He has made false election fraud claims a centerpiece of his campaign. McBurney dismissed the lawsuit and Perdue’s request for a “forensic inspection” of absentee ballots. The judge said Perdue’s claims consisted of “speculation, conjecture and paranoia — sufficient fodder for talk shows, op-ed pieces and social media platforms, but far short of what would legally justify a court taking such action.” McBurney ruled that Perdue had failed to state a proper claim for relief. The judge noted that Perdue could have filed a proper election challenge following the vote in November 2020, but he did not. Judges rejected several election challenges filed by Trump and his supporters.

In an order released this week, U.S. District Judge Steve Jones said that he won’t render any judgment until all evidence has been presented in the voting rights case lead by Fair Fight Action. The order is in response to the state’s attempt to dismiss the case after a month of testimony. Jones had been considering the state’s request that he throw out the case. Attorneys for Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger argued that the plaintiffs, which include voting rights groups and churches, failed to prove their allegations that the state’s voting policies disenfranchise voters. The trial is scheduled to last into June, and then Jones could issue a judgment later this summer.

Idaho: Fourth District Judge Jason Scott has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Rep. Priscilla Giddings (R-White Bird) against secretary of state and various county clerks, alleging they were causing “irreparable electoral damage” by preventing poll watchers from overseeing the processing of absentee and early-voting ballots for the May primary being processed. Giddings petitioned the judge for an ex parte motion, essentially an emergency ruling that would allow her volunteers to begin showing up at early voting locations and ballot collection sites immediately, before allowing those named in the suit a legal chance to respond. “After reviewing the petition and the motion, the Court is unpersuaded that there is any substantial reason to proceed on an ex parte basis, especially not when counsel for Respondents (Idaho Secretary of State Lawerence) Denney and (Chief Deputy Chad) Houck is in place and wishes to participate,” Scott wrote. The judge did not make a determination on whether Giddings or Denney made the correct interpretation of the Idaho statutes on poll watchers. Scott made a verbal ruling dismissing Giddings’ petition, and said he would issue a “short, confirmatory written ruling in the next day or two.”

Kansas: The Kansas Supreme Court issued a ruling declaring the congressional redistricting map approved by the Republican-led Legislature to be in compliance with the Kansas Constitution. The justices conducted oral argument Monday on an appeal by Attorney General Derek Schmidt of a Wyandotte County District Court judge’s May 18 opinion the map transferring liberal-leaning Lawrence from the 2nd District to the 1st District and splitting the Democratic stronghold of Wyandotte County between the 2nd and 3rd districts was unconstitutional. Justice Caleb Stegall, in a two-page ruling, said the majority of the state’s highest court held Senate Bill 355 didn’t violate the state constitution. “Therefore, the judgment of the district court is reversed and the permanent injunction ordered by the district court is lifted,” Stegall said in the order.

Michigan: The Michigan Court Administrative Office approved transferring Genesee County Clerk John Gleason’s casese out of Genesee County to avoid a conflict of interest. The case against him will be heard in Livingston County instead. Gleason, 67, was arrested on April 8 after the Tuscola County Prosecutor’s Office filed charges of witness bribing/intimidating/ interfering and willful neglect of duty against him. Tuscola County Prosecutor Mark Reene said members of Gleason’s staff raised concerns about the clerk’s actions, which led to the investigation and the charges. The Michigan Secretary of State’s Office has ordered Gleason to avoid any work on elections until further notice due to the charges against him and Genesee County Elections Supervisor Kathy Funk.

Missouri: A Jasper County judge granted a vote recount sought by a candidate who was narrowly edged out of a five-way race for three seats on the Joplin City Council. Candidate Brian Evans, who came up short by 13 votes according to official election returns, filed a petition in Jasper County Circuit Court days after the election asking for a recount. State law allows a recount if there is a difference of less than 1% in the vote between candidates. Financial adviser Josh DeTar was the closest with 2,339 votes to Evans’ count of 2,326. DeTar received 20.16% of the vote while Evans received 20.03%, which put the difference at less than 1%. The judge said that there was agreement among the attorneys who filed responses to the recount petition on behalf of Jasper and Newton counties, the city of Joplin and DeTar that Evans was entitled to the recount because of the narrow vote difference.

Montana: Three weeks before the primary election, the state Supreme Court restored a pair of 2021 election laws that ended Election Day registration and created stricter identification requirements for in-person voting. In a 4-1 decision, the court reversed an injunction granted in April by a district court judge who had ruled in favor of the Democratic Party, Native American organizations and a coalition of youth advocacy groups that are suing to overturn several laws enacted by Republicans in 2021. As a result, voters must now be registered to vote by noon on June 6, the day before the upcoming primary election. And voters casting their ballots in person can’t do so by relying solely on their student ID, as was the case before the laws were passed in 2021. Stand-alone forms of ID that will allow Montanans to vote in person include: Montana driver’s licenses, Montana state ID, a military ID, tribal photo ID, U.S. passport or a Montana concealed carry permit. The order was signed by justices Dirk Sandefur, Jim Shea, Beth Baker and Jim Rice. Chief Justice Mike McGrath “would deny the motion,” the order states. The plaintiffs have argued that the new laws are unconstitutional because they disproportionately burden voters from certain groups, including college students, Native Americans, elderly and disabled voters. Jacobsen, a Republican, has sought to uphold the new laws, arguing that they were designed to bolster the state’s election security and were within the Legislature’s authority to determine the state’s election processes. One of the plaintiffs in the case, Montana Youth Action, argued that reversing the injunction would create more confusion for voters, as it would effectively be the third time the rules have changed. “However, we place greater weight on the fact that elections have actually been conducted under the statutes as enacted … elections that a large portion of Montana voters participated in,” the justices wrote. They added that “the purpose of equitable injunctive relief is to preserve the status quo and minimize the harm to all parties pending final resolution on the merits,” the justices wrote, defining the “status quo” as the “last actual, peaceable, noncontested condition which proceeded” the lawsuit.

New Mexico: A conservative-backed foundation that aims to post online registration records for voters across the country urged a federal judge Tuesday to override objections by New Mexico election regulators who say the initiative violates state law and would discourage people from registering to vote out of privacy concerns. The VoteRef.com website does not list details of how people voted regarding candidates or initiatives. Eddie Greim, an attorney for Voter Reference Foundation, urged a federal judge to intervene and ensure voter rolls can be published online to provide direct accountability and allow people to vet the accuracy of most registration records submitted by others. New Mexico election regulators say the unprecedented efforts flouts state statutes that limit the acquisition and sharing of voter registration rolls to governmental activities and political campaigns. An attorney representing the secretary of state’s office warned that many residents will be reluctant or unwilling to register to vote if they know that required personal information is distributed openly. “People will simply not register if they think we will sell their data or make it available to the world,” said Olga Serafimova, an attorney for the state attorney general and secretary of state. “The system will unravel.” She said election regulators in several states see flaws in the foundation’s methodology for highlighting “discrepancies” between voting tallies on Election Day and registration records that are updated continually.

Pennsylvania: Judge Leonard Brown has ordered that a ballot drop box be temporarily restored at a Lancaster County government building. The ACLU of Pennsylvania had sued the county after the drop box was removed saying the decision to remove it was made at a meeting that was not open to the public and therefore the county was in violation of Sunshine laws. In his preliminary injunction, Brown stated the commissioners’ decision was an official action, and therefore needed to comply with the Sunshine Act, which states that a government agency needs to provide the public with at least 24 hours’ notice of any official action by posting its agenda on its website. He also rejected the argument from the county that removing the drop box was a “de minimis” action. “The number of public comments related to the drop box and the amount of time the Board itself spent discussing the issue establishes to the satisfaction of the court that the removal of a ballot drop box is not ‘so minor as to merit disregard’ and accordingly is not de minimis,” Brown wrote in his ruling. “Notably, Board Member D’Agostino suggested at the April 13, 2022 meeting that the matter of the drop box be addressed at a Board meeting the following week, which would have likely satisfied the (state law); however, Board Member Parsons suggested that a consensus existed, and the matter was finalized without a vote.”

South Dakota: U.S. District Judge Lawrence Piersol ruled this week that two South Dakota Sioux tribes and a voting rights group have standing to bring a lawsuit against the state over claims that state agencies did not offer voter registration services.  The tribes claim several South Dakota agencies violated the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) — also known as the “Motor Voter Law” — when they failed to update voters’ registration information at the Department of Motor Vehicles and public assistance offices. Defendants argue the Sioux tribal plaintiffs and the voting rights organization failed to state a claim for relief and moved for dismissal. “The language of this provision is clear in that ‘all offices in the state that provide public assistance’ must provide the voter registration services described in the NVRA,” Piersol wrote. “Plaintiffs have alleged the Department of Labor and Regulation provides such services and there is evidence to support the allegation.”

Washington: The state of Washington has been added as a defendant in a lawsuit over Yakima Valley voting boundaries after an order from a judge. The lawsuit, filed by a group of Latino voters and civil rights organizations, alleges violations of the federal Voting Rights Act and an intentional dilution of Latino voters’ influence. It is one of two lawsuits filed over redistricting in the Yakima Valley’s state legislative District 15. The state’s participation in the voting rights lawsuit is necessary to ensure the court could provide relief if needed, U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik said in his May 6 order. The UCLA Voting Rights Project, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and Campaign Legal Center, plaintiffs in the voting rights case, have requested that the court prohibit defendants from using the map and order the use of a new plan that does not dilute the strength of area Latino voters in the Yakima Valley.

Wisconsin: Dane County Circuit Judge Stephen Ehlke voiced skepticism about a lawsuit challenging the legality of private grant money awarded to Madison to help run the 2020 election, calling some of the arguments “ridiculous,” a “stretch” and “close to preposterous.” The lawsuit argues that private grants given to Madison from a group funded by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg amounted to illegal bribery. The Wisconsin Elections Commission in December rejected that complaint, and this lawsuit is an appeal of that decision. Four nearly identical lawsuits are also pending in Milwaukee, Green Bay, Racine and Kenosha. The case in Madison was the first to hold arguments. Three Wisconsin courts have previously rejected similar lawsuits arguing that the grants were illegal. Similar lawsuits filed in other swing states have also been rejected. “It’s sort of a bit like whack-a-mole,” the judge said of the complaint. “This case, my concern is, it just seems like it’s endless. There’s going to be some new allegation.” The judge promised to issue a ruling by the middle of June.

Opinions This Week

National Opinions: Election deniers | Ballot harvesting | Voting rights | Election lies, II | Ranked choice voting

California: Top-two primary | Nevada County

Colorado: Fremont County | Voting equipment

Florida: Election oversight | Ex-felon voting rights

Idaho: Election integrity | Language access| Poll workers

Kentucky: Turnout

Minnesota: Elections explained

Montana: Bipartisan working group

Nebraska: Turnout

New Mexico: Native American voting rights

New York: Voting rights | Primaries, II

Ohio: Poll workers

Oregon: Election security

Pennsylvania: Get out the vote | Vote by mail | Election lies

Washington: Ballot tracking

West Virginia: Voter confidence | Election officials

Upcoming Events

Facts in a Time of Fiction: Journalists have long been charged with sorting fact from fiction through their reporting. But what happens when readers redefine what they see as truth and what they’ll accept as fact?  New York Times writer and author Elizabeth Williamson is among journalists confronting the rampant rise and spread of conspiracy theories through her reporting and research. Her current work has focused around unraveling the targeted misinformation and lies spread after the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting in Newtown, Conn., the surviving families’ lawsuits against Infowars conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, and the election disinformation fueling the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol attack.  In this instructional program with the National Press Club Journalism Institute, Williamson will share her reporting and research process, along with insights she gained as she connected the dots on how conspiracy theories grow. Williamson, whose critically-acclaimed book “Sandy Hook: An American Tragedy and the Battle for Truth” published this spring, will describe how she threaded together more than 400 interviews, 10,000 pages of court testimony and other records, and on-the-ground reporting to trace a line from conspiracy theories around Sandy Hook to Jan. 6, 2021. Participants will learn to: Identify how misinformation and political conspiracy theories have spread; Work with sensitivity and clarity while reporting on conspiracy theories;  Pre-bunk conspiracy theories through early reporting; Use trauma-informed reporting methods while working with people suffering tragedy; and Organize reporting and deep research to craft a long-form narrative. Where: Online. When: June 10, 11:30am Eastern.

IGO Annual Conference: Join the International Association of Government Officials for their 5th Annual Conference this summer. Check back here for more details and how to register. When: June 17-24. Where: Indian Wells, California.

NASS Summer Conference: Join the National Association of Secretaries of State for their Annual Conference this summer. Check back here for more details and how to register. When: July 7-10. Where: Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

NASED Summer Conference: Twice a year, NASED members gather to discuss the latest developments in election administration.  Members of the public are welcome to attend at the non-member registration rate. When: July 18-21. Where: Madison, Wisconsin.

Election Center Annual Conference: Join the National Association of Election Officials (The Election Center) for their 37th Annual Conference this summer.  When: August 20-24. Where: Denver.

Job Postings This Week

electionlineWeekly publishes election administration job postings each week as a free service to our readers. To have your job listed in the newsletter, please send a copy of the job description, including a web link to mmoretti@electionline.org.  Job postings must be received by 5pm on Wednesday in order to appear in the Thursday newsletter. Listings will run for three weeks or till the deadline listed in the posting.

Administrative Services Manager, Decatur County, Georgia— Supervises, directs, and evaluates assigned staff; develops and oversees employee work schedules to ensure adequate coverage and control; compiles and reviews timesheets; approves/processes employee concerns and problems and counsels or disciplines as appropriate; assists with or completes employee performance appraisals; directs work; acts as a liaison between employees and management; and trains staff in operations, policies, and procedures. Salary: $67,182 – $104,133. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Associate Director, Elections & Voting, Democracy Fund— Democracy Fund champions leaders and organizations that defend democracy and challenge our political system to be more open and just. We believe that experimentation, learning, and adaptation are key to the health and resilience of any system, whether it is our organization or the American political system. As grantmakers, we focus on listening and serving our grantees, who are visionaries and our collaborators. Voting is the single most significant way Americans exercise political power. The Elections & Voting Program works to ensure that all Americans, especially those who have been historically underrepresented at the polls, have the opportunity to fully participate in the democratic process and freely vote for the candidates and issues representing their communities. The Associate Director will help lead and strengthen the Elections & Voting Program’s work to create a more equitable and accessible election system and empower communities to defend voting rights when they are threatened. The Associate Director will also help coordinate this work with Democracy Fund’s other programs, with other foundations, and with election field leaders and organizations. Reporting to the Elections & Voting Program Director, the Associate Director will help manage a growing team of staff and projects across the program, with a particular focus on strengthening our grantmaking processes, internal communications, and team operations. The successful candidate will be a systems thinker and builder who can drive impact while cultivating the internal organization needed to achieve our goals. We are looking for a connector with a demonstrated track record of managing people and creating opportunities for growth, learning, and collaboration. This role will work with the Program Director and Elections & Voting team members to develop the next phase of our strategies, support learning and team growth, and contribute to shaping Democracy Fund’s strategy and position in the field. This position also supports the work of Democracy Fund Voice, a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization. Salary: Range begins at $149,040. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Communications and Project Consultant, National Vote at Home Institute— National Vote at Home Institute (NVAHI) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to expanding the use of mailed-out ballots in local, state, and federal elections across America. Through our education, research, and advocacy efforts with state and local elections officials, policymakers, and partners, NVAHI works to expand this secure, convenient, and voter-supported method of voting and works to ensure state and local election officials have the tools, training, and support they need to conduct successful, transparent, accurate and secure mail ballot elections. NVAHI has launched an Election Official Hub to bring resources, training, advocacy, tools, and support to election officials across the nation as they work to make voting at home more efficient, accessible, equitable, accurate, and secure. The Election Official Hub will have two webinars a month, Wonk Wednesdays, on topics relevant to voting at home with information and resources specifically created for election officials. We will also have a resource section on our EO Hub that promotes the latest research, best practices, tools for implementation, and a communication tool kit. We seek a Communications and Project Consultant to provide consulting services to our Government Affairs Director in implementing and running our new hub. The ideal Consultant will have strong communications skills, knowledge of email marketing, and experience with managing webinars and researching resources for our election officials. This position routinely interacts with election officials, partners, research professionals/institutions, and vendors. This Consultant position is a contract position with NVAHI with consulting fees set between $5,000 and $6,000 a month. The anticipated duration of the contract is through March 31, 2023. The services performed by the Consultant will include implementing and operationalizing two webinars a month There will also be additional services related to research and outreach. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Communication Specialist III, King County, Washington— This position reports to the Communications Lead for the Department of Elections. The person who fills this role will play an integral role in providing accurate and reliable information to King County voters through a variety of mediums. As misinformation surrounding elections has grown, it has become more important than ever for Elections to communicate proactively, regularly, and reliably with our voters. This position will work with a team of highly qualified election professionals and will often be tasked with translating complex technical processes into information that can be delivered on a variety of platforms and easily understood by a variety of audiences. This position will work closely with the Language Services and Community Engagement team to ensure all information is delivered in Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese in a culturally appropriate way. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Communications Manager, Sarasota County, Florida— The Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections is recruiting for a Communications Manager to join the elections team. This is a highly collaborative position primarily responsible for the development and implementation of communications campaigns, creation and execution of election-related information and coordination of public records requests and records maintenance for the Supervisor of Elections office. This position reports to the Communications Director and helps develop and manage internal and external communications that represent the SOE’s mission and goals. Work involves independent planning and execution of projects and responsibilities. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Communications Specialist, The U.S. Election Assistance Commission— The employee and supervisor collaborate to develop the approach, timelines and general framework for projects and, within these parameters, the employee independently plans and carries out the work involved in developing, maintaining, and managing media communication, coordinating with others as appropriate, interpreting and applying policy, determining the content and format for media communication, and consulting with the supervisor on questionable content or issues. The Director of Communications assigns special projects and assignments, defining the nature of the assignment, objectives to be achieved, and resources available. The employee independently resolves most problems that arise, keeping the Director informed on unusual, sensitive or controversial matters. Completed work is reviewed for achievement of objectives and consistency with governing laws, regulations, policies, and the EAC strategic plan. Salary: $74,950 – $95,824. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

County Clerk, Lane County, Oregon— Lane County is seeking a proven leader with experience in elections and real property records. The County Clerk leads a dedicated team that performs their work with accuracy and integrity. The successful candidate is someone who demonstrates a passion to serve the community, high level of attention to detail, and strong communication skills while interacting with the public, elected officials, and outside agencies. The County Clerk is responsible for planning, organizing, and conducting all regular and special elections, voter registration, property tax appeals, permanent real property records, marriage licensing, domestic partnership registrations, and archived records management while ensuring compliance with all applicable Federal, State, and Local laws. Additional duties include preparing, reviewing and analyzing data, working with a staff of 14 full-time employees, budget and financial management, and managing technology solutions that support County Clerk operations. Salary: $82,971 – $122,033. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Development and Communications Specialist, Election Reformers— This part-time specialist, reporting to the Executive Director based in Newton, MA, will help us guide our messaging about complicated (but important) reforms, draft communications, and develop ERN’s member strategy to support engagement and fundraising. The specialist will assist in development and communications. Key responsibilities will include: Helping to define the organization’s communications strategy and to guide regular content and messaging updates; Drafting external communications, email newsletters, website updates, background outreach to journalists, and occasional press releases; Providing input on overall social media strategy and on specific messages; Developing ERN’s member strategy to support engagement and fundraising; Participating in discussions regarding strategy and overall organizational planning; Providing input on ERN reports, op-eds and other publications. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Director of Elections, Cumberland County, North Carolina— The Elections Director works under the administrative direction of the County Board of Elections and Executive Director of the State Board of Election. The Elections Director performs professional, managerial, and administrative work for the Board of Elections and carries out all duties or responsibilities as assigned by Chapter 163 of the General Statutes of the State of North Carolina and as delegated by members of the County Board in accordance with the laws of the State of North Carolina, GS 163-35 (d) and 163-33.  Reports to the Chairman of the Cumberland County Board of Elections. Salary: $78,784.40 – $132,425.23. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Election Hardware Manager, Dallas County, Texas— Manages the lifecycle of election hardware by developing and maintaining processes, policies, systems and measurements. Manages the election hardware inventory; ensures quality control by assigning and deploying equipment; recommends, implements, and utilizes automation and tools to monitor and report on inventory; records and manages licenses, service agreements, and warranties for election hardware and related software/firmware; reviews, analyzes, and evaluates election hardware operations. Establishes and maintains an inventory of election related assets to include but not limited to ballot marking devices, ballot counters, electronic poll books, mobile networking equipment, computers/laptops, mobile devices, tablets, and related software and peripherals. Plans, monitors, and enforces the usage, tracking, and health of election hardware and software. Plans, monitors, and enforces configuration of election hardware to include installed software, security configuration, and election specific programming/configurations. Provides regular reports and analysis on asset usage and related costs. Documents and provides guidance and training on the usage, tracking, and maintenance of election hardware and related peripherals and software in coordination with vendors and election staff. Manages, trains and guides the work of staff in preparing, deploying, and supporting election hardware. Performs other duties as assigned. Salary: $5094.59- $6355.07. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Election Security Intelligence Analyst, Illinois State Board of Elections— Under administrative direction, serves as a team member identifying computer system vulnerabilities in partnership with the Illinois State Board of Elections and Department of Innovation and Technology for local election authorities and other state election partners. Identifies vulnerabilities and provides technical analysis and remediation recommendations for those affected computer systems, including forensic analysis for investigations, monitoring and reporting. Provides technical support to the Cyber Security Information Sharing Program Manager and Cyber Navigator Program Manager of the Illinois State Board of Elections Cyber Navigator Program in coordination with the Department of Innovation and Technology Security Operations Center.  Develops and recommends measures to safeguard systems before and after they are compromised.  Conducts monthly Tech Talks on election security and relevant cyber threats for local election authorities and their IT and security staff.  Develop annual cyber security training for local election authorities. Develops publications, guides, and other election security related resources for statewide distribution. Participates in the development of incident response plans, continuity of operation plans, and tabletop exercise training.  Serves on-call for emergency situations and Election Day.  Travel to attend training sessions, conferences, meetings, etc. is required. Serves as a team member identifying computer system vulnerabilities; reviews existing computer systems of local election authorities monitored by DoIT for security violations.  Document incidents as appropriate.  Perform analysis of systems for any weaknesses, technical flaws or vulnerabilities.  Identifies vulnerabilities and provides remediation recommendations for those affected computer systems, including forensic analysis for investigations, monitoring and reporting. Coordinates with regionally assigned cyber navigators to assist local election authorities information technology staff/vendor mitigate incidents or provide technical support. Monitors network traffic by utilizing intrusion detection devices and other technologies. Monitors activities such as automated notification of security breaches and automated or manual examination of logs, controls, procedures, and data.  Salary: $5,667 – $6,000 Monthly. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Election Specialist Lead, Thurston County, Washington — As a Lead Election Specialist, you will assist in the preparation and operation of County elections by coordinating or assisting with all ballot processing, hiring and training of extra help workers, and coordinating voter registration and education programs. There will be significant public contact, requiring effective communication and professional services to customers. Other responsibilities in this role would include, but are not limited to, the following: Assist the Division Manager in supervising and providing direction and training to assigned staff and employees. Assist with the review and approval of leave requests for extra help employees and monitors workloads and task distribution providing feed back to the Division Manager. In charge of communication with all districts and candidates to ensure all elected and appointed officials have taken their oath of office and that the oath of office is on file. Coordinate with other county departments for the set up and running of extra-large voting center in high volume elections, ensuring that all statutory laws are being followed. Process and provide public record requests for voter data and election data. Communicate with customers in person, by phone, and through written correspondence to provide information regarding voter registration, election dates, ballots, laws, and procedures. Implement changes required by federal and state law within areas of responsibility and documents changes in policies and procedures. Salary: $3,819 – $5,079 Monthly. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Elections Business Intelligence Specialist, Tennessee Secretary of State— Summary: Assist in planning and coordinating the computer functions and responsibilities for the Elections Division which includes, but is not limited to: data processing, integrating the statewide voter registration system with county voter registration systems, improve election reporting capabilities; analyzing and resolving technical software issues (25%) for the Division of Elections and 95 county election commission offices, which includes, but is not limited to cybersecurity practices; reviewing and researching regulations, legislation, government codes, and directives relevant to the technical elections operation; including serving as the liaison to the Office of the Comptroller of the Treasury, Local Government; and performing other duties as assigned. This position is responsible for the accuracy and timely compliance and security of voter registration data, ballot review and approval, producing and analyzing election-related state and federal reports, maintaining and assist in updating elections mobile app. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Elections Manager, Yavapai County, Arizona— The Elections Manager is a full-time position within the Yavapai County Elections Department that reports to the Elections Director. Major responsibilities include: General management of the Elections department including: recruiting, training, and evaluating employees; managing schedules, workflow, and accuracy of work; and developing policies and strategies for the department; Coordinating all logistics for the County’s polling locations; Testing and maintaining all voting equipment and test ballots; Actively liaising with large stakeholders in the elections process, including other government entities, political parties, and candidates. A minimum of four (4) years administrative/supervisor experience with two (2) years in Elections or related field required. Associate’s degree in public administration, project management, business administration or related field required. An equivalent combination of directly related work experience and education may substitute for the degree requirement on a year per year basis. Salary: $56,234.74 – $68,617.06. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Elections Manager, Cochise County, Arizona— Under limited supervision by the Director of Elections, performs professional and administrative work of a high level in the management of election administration work in planning, organizing and directing strategic and daily goals and objectives, operations and activities of the Elections Department. Performs other related work as assigned. Assists the Director of Elections in the administration and supervision of all County, special, primary and general elections with state and local jurisdictions; Manages program requirements through appropriate delegation and work supervision, organization and assignment of task duties including warehouse organization and inventory, delivery and return of election supplies to polling places, poll workers, election boards, training and pay, website, and submitting meeting agenda items; Assists with ballot creation process including proofreading all ballot styles, sending ballot proofs to candidates and jurisdictions, and creating and reviewing ballot orders; Assures accuracy of election materials and maintains chain of custody of ballots, forms, equipment, and materials; Programs, tests, and maintains all voting equipment, following Federal, State, and local requirements; Recruits, coordinates, trains, manages, supervises, and terminates seasonal or temporary staff in consultation with the Director; Develops and presents poll worker education and curriculum for online and in-person training; Assists with ballot tabulation duties including coordinating, hiring, and training the Early Boards to receive, count and prepare early ballots for tabulation, assists with oversight of receiving Boards on Election night to receive and tabulate the polling place ballots, assists with Hand Count Boards as part of the election audition process and completes necessary reports related to canvass of election and post-election audits; Assists with election night reporting, including preparing the necessary data uploads into the State’s reporting system; Assists with oversite of the departmental budget and administers office financial tasks including but not limited to, inputting requisitions, tracking expenditures and budget reconciliation, lease agreements, paying invoices, overseeing and maintains inventory for equipment and supplies and assists with annual budget preparation; Delivers effective, accurate, secure, cost-effective customer service relative to areas of responsibility. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Elections Program Engagement Manager, US Digital Response— USDR is seeking an Engagement Manager to be an early hire for our growing Elections program. As an early hire, we are looking for someone who is excited to influence the shape and structure of the program, particularly the way we build relationships with government partners. USDR partners often reach out with a complex problem knowing that USDR teams will work collaboratively to meet their needs. The Engagement Manager will be responsible for working with new and existing partners and shaping USDR projects in this space, while engaging the elections team and volunteer network to deliver on our partners’ needs. You’ll work with multiple levels of government and non-governmental organizations, interfacing with elections office stakeholders, individual engineers, support personnel, and everyone in between. You would be a good fit for this role if you’re an elections expert, a project or program manager with delivery experience, or a technologist with experience in supporting government partners. In this position, you will: Build and maintain strong, credible relationships with government partners and key stakeholders in the elections ecosystem; Create and maintain the process and infrastructure for maintaining relationships with existing partners, including building a community space for these partners; Explore new opportunities to provide impact and support to new and existing elections partners; Collaborate with government partners and USDR technologists to translate partner feedback into new features and impactful projects; Manage a portfolio of complex projects and initiatives in our Elections Program, including Poll Worker Management; and Represent USDR and the values of our Volunteer Oath in your work. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Elections Specialist, Mesa County, Colorado— As an employee in the Election Division, duties focus on a variety of work related to elections office goals, including voter registration applications, additions, changes, cancellations, and party affiliation in voter registrations. Workload, focused within the election office during an election cycle, including working with other staff to complete voter registration data entry, processing voters, and assisting the voting process of the ACP program and military/overseas voters, operation and maintenance of the election equipment, maintenance of the Address Library, voter cancelations using SCORE, and bulk print mailings. Other duties may include coordinating and organization of supplies for office and polling location in preparation for an election. Assist with election judge recruitment, assisting with scheduling and judge training. Performs daily data entry of voter registration forms, as needed. Overall, working as a team, individuals will gravitate towards and excel at certain tasks but every team member should have a solid understanding of all the tasks, which ensures redundancy and collaboration. Salary: $18.51 – $20.83 Hourly. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Elections Supervisor, Dallas County, Texas— Assists with managing the administration and operation of an election program area, to include program planning, supervising the work of others, establishing goals and objectives, developing schedules, priorities and standards for achieving goals, and coordinating and evaluating program activities. Assists management by planning, organizing, delegating and overseeing the daily operations of one or more areas of responsibility associated with the election process. Oversees the election program area to ensure staffing coverage is adequate, and productivity standards are met and are effective develops and implements goals and objectives, performance measures and techniques to evaluate programmatic activities reviews correspondence and reports from local, state and or federal agencies analyzes statistical data and prepares and maintains related reports. Researches and maintains comprehensive knowledge and understanding of applicable laws, policies and procedures to effectively communicate with staff, and acts as liaison and departmental representative to elected officials, political representatives, candidates, judges, contracting customers, vendors, general public, and or other county, state and federal representatives to resolve problems, answer questions, provide assistance and modify policies/procedures. Hires and trains supervisory and support staff, evaluates performance and initiates disciplinary actions coordinates and monitors scheduling, productivity and workloads. Assists in budget preparation and maintains related data and reports. Performs other duties as assigned. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Executive Director, Elections, The Pew Charitable Trusts— The Executive Director will guide the efforts of several interested philanthropic funders, which aim to advance evidence-based and nonpartisan solutions that improve the access to, integrity of, and trustworthiness of the U.S. election administration system. This position will lead a team of 3-4 staff to drive transformative investments, and will be accountable for developing investment recommendations, allocating resources to sourcing and due diligence, supporting fundraising, and providing leadership to drive progress and performance. The ideal candidate will have significant and distinguished work experience relevant to election administration and U.S. democracy, managing senior-level professional staff, and working with executive leadership, boards, or donors. This senior role requires a proven track record of leadership and accomplishment in designing and implementing programs aimed at solving complex and dynamic problems. The individual in this role must understand best, promising, and emerging practices and innovations in the field of election administration, and have well-honed political, strategic and analytical skills. The Executive Director must be flexible and results-oriented, with exceptional interpersonal, relationship-building and communication skills, and experience translating concepts into action, with a proven record of success in developing and implementing innovative strategies and solutions with the engagement of a broad set of stakeholders. This position will report to the Executive Vice President and Chief Program Officer. The position has a set time frame that could be extended based on the success of the program, funding sources, and board decisions on continued support. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Executive Director, National Association of Election Officials— The Election Center Board of Directors is inviting highly qualified professionals to apply for the Executive Director position. Tim Mattice, who has successfully served the Election Center for 16 years, is retiring in December 2022. The Election Center Board of Directors invites you to apply to be the next Executive Director for the Election Center – The National Association of Election Officials. The new Executive Director will be the leader of the oldest and most respected organization formed exclusively for election and voter registration officials. This is an opportunity to lead the organization into the future focusing on the strategic plan, providing service and education to members, and helping to preserve democracy. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Executive Director, U.S. Election Assistance Commission— The Executive Director has overall Commission-wide responsibility for implementing, through its operating divisions and offices, the management and administrative policies and decisions of the Commissioners. The Executive Director serves as a key management advisor to the Commissioners. The Executive Director is responsible for ensuring the agency meets its mission defined in HAVA. The Executive Director’s responsibilities include: Ensuring that EAC administrative activities comply with governing statutes and regulations in support of the effective and efficient accomplishment of EAC’s mission. Understanding HAVA and other election laws, regulations, and legal decisions pertinent to the EAC mission to assist with agency oversight. Maintaining good relationships with the U.S. Congress and the various EAC oversight committees and governing bodies of elections, including, state legislatures, city/county officials, and EAC FACA boards. Ability to establish program/policy goals and the structure and processes necessary to implement the organization’s strategic vision and mission, to ensure that programs and policies are being implemented and adjusted as necessary, that the appropriate results are being achieved, and that a process for continually assessing the quality of the program activities is in place. Providing periodic assessment of the administrative efficiency and managerial effectiveness of the EAC through strategic planning including: program reviews, reviews of programmatic goals and outcomes, and resource utilization in achieving results. Consulting with and advising Divisions and Offices on general management and operating practices affecting their substantive program areas. Developing solutions to potential and existing barriers that may limit or impede goal achievement. Planning, assigning, and appraising work products to assure high levels of performance. Deadline: June 13. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Executive Support Assistant, Decatur County, Georgia— Provides executive/administrative support to the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, and/or other executive official as assigned; relieves executive staff of routine administrative tasks; screens calls, mail, and e-mail messages and initiates appropriate action/response; composes, types, edits, or proofreads correspondence on behalf of executives; records and/or transcribes dictation; keeps executives informed of significant matters, messages, documentation, or other information; conducts special projects as needed; and maintains confidentiality of departmental documentation and issues. Salary: $50,119 – $77,684. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Finance Coordinator, Sarasota County, Florida— The Finance Coordinator is a professional, administrative position mainly responsible for the oversight and management of the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections budget and finance activities. Work involves independent planning and execution of projects and responsibilities; demands long hours during election cycles. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Initiative Internship Program, Arizona Secretary of State’s Office—The Arizona Secretary of State’s Office is offering a paid Initiative Internship Program working with the Elections Division for 6 weeks (June 27 to August 8, 2022), for students who want to learn about election administration and support the initiative review process leading up to the 2022 election. An intern with the Elections Division, will learn about the application of state law through the initiative process. Interns will contribute to the team by assisting with the processing of initiative petitions. There will be in-person as well as remote processing requirements, and an intern must be available for both. Students or recent graduates interested in public service and witnessing democracy in action are encouraged to apply. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Information Technology Security Analyst, Illinois State Board of Elections— The IT Security Analyst reports directly to the Manager of Cyber Operations and Infrastructure. Supports the administration, implementation, review, and improvement of endpoint, network, hardware, application, and data security practices. Implements, supports and monitors the agency’s information security applications, including email security, web security, endpoint security software, firewalls, intrusion prevention applications, data loss prevention, etc. Monitors system dashboards and logs for threat indicators. Analyzes data and performs necessary incident response procedures. Conducts network, system and application vulnerability assessments. Analyzes agency threat surface and makes recommendations to management to harden agency systems. Evaluates agency processes and implements and/or makes recommendations to enhance security. Reviews information received concerning threat events from end users, supervisory personnel, other federal, state, county and local agencies and governmental entities involved in the exchange of data with the State Board of Elections (SBE), external entities such as the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC), Elections Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EI-ISAC), trusted cybersecurity vendors, law enforcement agencies, and public information sources. Consults with SBE staff on security issues. Provides a high level of customer service to agency staff, state, county, and local election officials. Ensures service desk queues and incidents are handled in an appropriate and timely manner. Salary: $6,264 – $8,917 Monthly. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

LAN Administrator, King County Elections— King County Department of Elections (KCE) is searching for an energetic and resourceful professional who likes to “get stuff done.” The LAN Administrator – Journey position in the Elections Department combines an exciting environment with the opportunity to cultivate talents and apply a variety of skills. The ideal candidate will thrive in an innovative, fast-paced environment and will not hesitate to roll up both sleeves, work hard, have fun, and get the job done. This position is responsible for the build and support of laptops, desktops, and all other Elections auxiliary technology equipment. Duties include providing workstation provisioning, imaging, and support for Office 365. This position will also resolve software and hardware problems for end users locally and remotely; maintain end user hardware and software and the inventory of such; and be primary back-up for account setup, administration and management. This position reports to the Information Technology Division Director. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Multistate Project Manager, Election Reformers Network— The specialist will assist our Vice President of Programs in building and maintaining relationships with state-level stakeholders. Key responsibilities will include: Preparing analysis of state election administration structures and laws, and of political landscape for reform; Self-directed communication and coalition-building with election officials, nonprofit organizations, and other actors from across the ideological spectrum; Tracking and maintaining relationships across multiple states; Clearly communicating and distilling complicated information to interested audiences; Scheduling remote conference calls and video calls across multiple time zones; Providing input on ERN reports, op-eds and other publications. This role offers a great opportunity to be a part of the solution to the country’s pressing democracy challenges. ERN is committed to developing election solutions that can gain support from a wide range of political perspectives; for that reason it is essential that the candidate be open-minded, non-dogmatic, and skilled at understanding and working with a wide range of people and perspectives. The specialist will work remotely, most likely on a half-time basis, though the time frame is open to discussion. The specialist will report to the Executive Director (based in Newton, MA) and Vice President of Programs (based in Santa Fe, New Mexico). Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Nonpartisan Elections Observer, The Carter Center— The Carter Center is guided by a fundamental commitment to promote human rights, alleviate human suffering, enhance freedom and democracy, and improve health conditions. The Center seeks a highly qualified, motivated and energetic consultant to the Center’s US Elections Project. The Democracy Program at The Carter Center works globally to support democratic elections and strengthen participatory democracy, consistent with human rights. Beginning in 2020, The Carter Center began efforts to support good elections in the U.S. There are multiple key aspects to this project, contributing to electoral reform, promoting candidate codes of conduct, tracking disinformation and dangerous speech, and establishing nonpartisan observation efforts. The Carter Center plans to advance possible nonpartisan observation efforts in two key states: Arizona and Michigan. These states were selected following state assessments completed on multiple states. Nonpartisan observation efforts implemented and/or supported by The Carter Center will differ from existing partisan poll watchers and election protection groups. The goal of this observation is to provide credible and transparent information on the conduct of election in each state through public reports. The Carter Center is seeking Observation Coordinators to lead efforts in Arizona and Michigan to establish and support nonpartisan observation efforts. Working with Carter Center staff and consultants, the Observer Coordinators will work to meet with new and existing stakeholders to build an observation effort and determine the best possibility for nonpartisan observation in each state. The work will be conducted in two Phases. In Phase I, the Coordinators will focus on partnership and network building. The second phase will focus more deeply on the logistics of observer deployment and project implementation based on the plans and partnerships developed in Phase I. Start date: As soon as possible, with potential travel around the state. Location: Michigan or Arizona. Length of assignment: This project is in two phases. Phase 1 will be for 3 months with possibility of extension into Phase 2 which will last up to 9 months. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Program Coordinator, MIT Election Data & Science Lab— PROGRAM COORDINATOR, Political Science, to coordinate and perform day-to-day operational activities and project planning for the MIT Election Data and Science Lab, a research project that encourages a scientific approach to improving elections in the U.S. The lab’s activities include the conduct of its own research, coordinating the research of others, and fostering a larger community of allied researchers around the country. Will oversee the lab’s budget and reconcile accounts; plan seminar series/workshops; and work as part of a team on a wide range of projects, special initiatives, and events. Responsibilities include developing, implementing, and monitoring the lab’s research projects; overseeing budgets related to grants received by the lab; coordinating seminars, conferences, and workshops; remaining aware of the progress of the lab’s projects and helping to problem-solve bottlenecks; representing the lab at special events and committee meetings; preparing correspondence in response to internal/external inquiries; composing, editing, and proofreading lab materials; helping to track progress on lab achievements and communicating them to funders; making vendor and purchasing suggestions/decisions; developing documentation/reporting for stakeholders; developing and maintaining website content; and performing other dues as necessary. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Program Manager III (Director of Election Reform and Management), Maryland State Board of Elections— The Director of the Election Reform and Management Division manages and supports the State’s implementation of the Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and other federal election laws, develops and implements efforts to improve election administration, and oversees the duties assigned to the Division. The position also manages the State’s provisional voting program conducted by the local boards of elections and the agency’s election judge training program and supports the State’s mail-in voting program. The Division oversees an audit program of the local boards of elections and statewide training and education programs for election officials. Salary: $66,516 – $108,929 /year. Deadline: June 6. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Program Manager, California Voter Foundation— CVF seeks an experienced and accomplished part time program manager who is passionate about voting rights and advocacy, election reform, support for election officials, and nonpartisan expertise. This position will be instrumental in supporting the day to day operations of CVF, managing communications, and supporting important programmatic initiatives. Candidates must be eager to work in a fast-paced, collaborative environment and be able to balance and prioritize competing demands. This is a remote, part-time position, with the potential to transition to a full-time position, who reports to the president of CVF. Responsibilities: Manage communications and outreach with a network of diverse leaders and stakeholders from all sectors across many time zones; Coordinate projects and research related to election funding, curtailing mis- and disinformation and legal and law enforcement protections for election officials; Support grant writing and research fundraising opportunities; Write news releases, social media posts, meeting agendas, and meeting notes; Respond to emails in a timely and professional manner; Help manage CVF social media accounts: Twitter and Facebook; Schedule meetings and plan webinar events; Attend webinars and monitor election news and events; and Support other CVF projects as needed. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Research Associate, Data Analysis, CEIR— The Research Associate will work under the direction of the Research Director and in collaboration with other colleagues to support CEIR’s research initiatives. These initiatives include matters pertaining to voter registration, voter access, election integrity and security, and election administration policy. As an integral member of the research team, the Research Associate will support CEIR’s mission by developing and conducting surveys and studies, analyzing data, and contributing to research reports and other written materials for CEIR’s diverse audience of election officials, policymakers, the media, and key stakeholders. Primary responsibilities: Collect and clean data, analyze data using statistical software, visualize findings, and develop presentations on results for internal and external audiences; Brief members of the leadership and research teams on research results, including through graphs, charts, and other data visualization tools; Synthesize findings and help draft reports, issue briefs, and other written products for publication; As a member of the research team, help assess where CEIR’s work can have the biggest impact, identify growth opportunities, and develop research proposals; Assist with all research activities, including project design, data collection and analysis, and dissemination of findings; Develop deep expertise on issues relevant to CEIR’s mission, including policies affecting election administration and voter access; Monitor trends, research, and publications in the election space to inform CEIR’s research portfolio; Promote a team culture of high performance and continuous improvement that values learning, quality, collaboration, positivity, and transparency; Maintain effective communication with team members and participate in regular team meetings. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Senior Programmer Analyst, Clark County, Nevada— This position provides project and program leadership to professional and technical staff; performs applications systems design, modification and programming of a routine to complex nature in support of County administrative and business services for multiple computer platform applications. Provides lead direction, training and work review to a programming project team; organized and assigns work, sets priorities, and follows-up and controls project status to ensure coordination and completion of assigned work. Provides input into selection, evaluation, disciplinary and other personnel matters. Gathers and analyzes information regarding customer systems and requirements and develops or modifies automated systems to fulfill these needs. Conducts feasibility studies and develops system, time, equipment and cost requirements. Using computer generated techniques, simulates hardware and software problems, tests and evaluates alternative solutions, and recommends and implements appropriate applications design. Develops program logic and processing steps; codes programs in varied languages. Plans and develops test data to validate new or modified programs; designs input and output forms and documents. Troubleshoots hardware and software problems, as needed, for customers, other agencies and information systems personnel. Writes program documentation and customer procedures and instructions and assists user departments and staff in implementing new or modified programs and applications; tracks and evaluates project and systems progress. Writes utility programs to support and validate adopted systems and programs. Confers with customer department staff regarding assigned functional program areas. Maintains records and prepares periodic and special reports of work performed. Maintains current knowledge of technology and new computer customer applications. Contributes to the efficiency and effectiveness of the unit’s service to its customers by offering suggestions and directing or participating as an active member of a work team. Uses standard office equipment in the course of the work; may drive a personal or County motor vehicle or be able to arrange for appropriate transportation in order to travel between various job sites depending upon departments and/or projects assigned. This is an open and continuous recruitment, scheduling dates will vary depending on when the application was received and reviewed by Human Resources. This examination will establish an Open Competitive Eligibility list to fill current and/or future vacancies that may occur within the next six (6) months or may be extended as needed by Human Resources. Human Resources reserves the right to call only the most qualified applicants to the selection process. Salary: $32.07 – $49.74 Hourly. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Senior Software Engineer, Ballotpedia— Ballotpedia seeks a full-time, 100% remote Senior Software Engineer to join its Tech team. Our Senior Software Engineer will provide technical leadership to a group of web developers and data engineers and will be able to advise on best practices, champion code quality, assist in the professional development of team members, and scope out new opportunities for the organization. At a high level, you will develop a holistic view of Ballotpedia’s architecture, infrastructure and software design and develop the ability to guide the team accordingly. Reporting to the Director of Technology Operations and in collaboration with organization leadership, you will help define requirements and inform priorities around software development at the organization across many products. As a Senior Software Engineer, you will also implement these software solutions and contribute your own code to further Ballotpedia’s mission of making high-quality political data and unbiased encyclopedic content available to the American public. This is a full-stack role that may include various aspects of development, design, programming, architecture, testing, and tooling. This role also includes higher-level decision-making related to technology used at the company, as well as leadership of the other web developers. Salary: $100,000-$120,000. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Training Coordinator, Sarasota County, Florida— This position is primarily responsible for curriculum development and training of election poll workers. Additional responsibilities include assisting in the selection of and communication with poll workers; procuring polling locations, including ensuring their suitability and accessibility, and developing and training other elections staff. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Voter Education & Outreach Specialist, Washington Secretary of State’s Office— This position reports to the Voting Information Services Manager of the Elections Division and works collaboratively to provide outreach and educational services. This position leads onsite customer service to candidates during annual peaks, voters’ pamphlet training for internal staff, organization of printed materials for proofing, fulfillment of outreach materials to stakeholders, and coordinates the printing and distribution of the state Voters’ Pamphlet. The passage of new legislation (ESHB 2421) increases the business needs to be met by the Secretary of State’s Office. Each May and June, the office must preview and process candidate’s statements to be printed in local county primary pamphlets as well as the processing necessary July through October for the state general election pamphlet. The Voting Information Services (VIS) team promotes accessible, fair, and accurate elections. Through educational programs and service excellence, we help eligible Washington residents register to vote, file for office, and cast an informed ballot. VIS exercises visionary leadership to publish the state Voters’ Pamphlet. The team provides voters and candidates with essential tools and training, digestible data and auditing reports, outreach programs and publications. VIS also advises County Auditors in interpretations of federal and state election law to uphold the integrity of election administration throughout the state. These objectives are accomplished through official communications, collaboration with stakeholders, and educational publications including the state Voters’ Pamphlet. The VIS program also acts as liaison for the Office of the Secretary of State. Salary: $55,524 – $74,604. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Voter Services Supervisor (Republican), Lucas County, Ohio— Reports to the Directors.  Voter Services Supervisor is charged with managing and evaluating staff in accordance with the standards established by the Lucas County Board of Elections including training of said staff (shared responsibility with Democrat). Responsible for the accurate and timely data entry of all registration information including, but not limited to, new registrations, address changes, deletions, corrections and name changes in the voter registration system (both local and state); Responsible for supervision of all absentee by mail operations including but not limited to, processing absentee applications and assembling/mailing absentee ballot packets to voters as prescribed by law;  Responsible for processing of all returned absentee ballots; Responsible for supervising inspection and counting all absentee ballots;  Responsible for preparing absentee ballots for tabulation and the balancing of said tabulation as prescribed by law. Assisting in the processing and reviewing of the validity and sufficiency of all candidates, initiative and referendum petitions; Responsible for adhering to all statutory deadlines regarding campaign finance, registration, absentee voting and local options; Responsible for maintaining the supervision of the switchboard operations; Responsible for administrating the processing of the NCOA and Duplicate Lists; Responsible for maintaining confidentiality and business integrity. Responsible for providing the Directors with periodic written status reports regarding work processed and still outstanding in a format established by the Directors; Responsible for ensuring that a sufficient number of staff are logged into the phone queues at all times. Performs all other duties as assigned, by the Directors, the Board of elections, and/or as prescribed by law. Responsible for daily supervision of operations within the absentee department by mail and in person voting. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

Web Developer, Ballotpedia— Ballotpedia is seeking a full-time, senior full-stack Web Developer to join our organization. This is a remote position. Ballotpedia’s Tech team supports the rest of the staff in making high-quality political data and unbiased encyclopedic content available to the American public by improving many aspects of Ballotpedia’s web presence and the behind-the-scenes tools used by staff. This is a full-stack role that may include various aspects of engineering, development, design, programming, architecture, testing, and tooling. We are looking for someone with at least two years of career experience in full-stack web development who can demonstrate abilities across the stack. Salary: $65,000-$85,000. Application: For the complete job listing and to apply, click here.

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