Voting Rights Associate Director

Wisconsin Conservation Voters (WCV) is seeking an adept coalition builder and strategist to lead a coalition focused on building support for and passing a voting rights legislative agenda in Wisconsin. This is a full time limited term employment position for 24 months with the possibility of extension. The position can be located anywhere in Wisconsin, but must have the ability to regularly travel to Madison, as much as 2-3 times per week during specific times of the year.

In order to support our team to do their best work, we offer a strong benefits package that includes a 36 hour work week, generous paid time off, parental leave, quality health and dental, 401(k) plan, and more – details below. We also utilize a transparent pay structure in order to ensure we are equitable and competitive in our salaries. 

Who We Are

Wisconsin Conservation Voters engages voters to protect Wisconsin’s environment. To achieve that, Wisconsin Conservation Voters advocates for sound environmental laws and policies, holds elected officials accountable for their votes and actions, and elects pro-conservation candidates who will champion our priority issues. WCV is committed to ensuring people have fair access to the ballot and democratic systems that work for people and are working to forward voting rights policy. Learn more about us at conservationvoters.org. 

What You’ll Do

The person selected for this position will serve as the project lead, facilitating a coalition to create and implement a campaign focused on building support for and passing transformative voting rights legislation. The Voting Rights Associate Director will lead the campaign, working directly with coalition partners to gather feedback from community members, educate and endorse candidates, develop the narrative framework, and identify legislative champions. The Voting Rights Associate Director will be responsible for building relationships with stakeholders, working with the coalition/project’s executive committee, and convening coalition members to develop and execute the larger project strategy to protect and expand access to voting in Wisconsin.

We know there are great candidates who may not have all of the following experience or check all of the boxes, and we also know you might bring important skills that we haven’t considered. If that applies to you, don’t hesitate to apply and tell us about yourself.

Areas of Responsibility:

• Project Management and Leadership: The person in this role will facilitate and lead the creation of a campaign to pass a voting rights legislative agenda in an upcoming legislative session. The campaign will involve working directly with coalition partners to gather feedback from community members, educating and endorsing candidates, developing a narrative framework, and identifying legislative champions. The position will work with the coalition executive committee and coalition membership to create this plan. The person in this role will build and manage relationships with coalition membership and other priority external stakeholders, including election officials. 
• Coalition Coordination:  The person in this role will build and facilitate the coalition and serve as liaison between the executive committee and coalition members. The Voting Rights Associate Director will work with partners and impacted communities to build alignment around the short and long-term goals of the project. This will include soliciting feedback from community members, establishing legislative priorities, and engaging in candidate education and accountability. The person in this role will also organize and facilitate collaborative partner events, including regularly scheduled coalition meetings and trainings. 
• Coalition Representation: The person in this role will serve as a representative of the coalition with stakeholders including state, local and national partners and funders. They will be responsible for producing progress updates, reports, and presentations for the executive committee and other stakeholders as necessary. 
• Strategy: The person in this role will play a central role in shaping and executing strategy for the coalition. 
• Staff Management:  In the future, this position may be responsible for the direct supervision and management of project staff and other project contractors/vendors. If so, this person must ensure a safe, welcoming, cohesive, and inspiring team culture for staff.
• Other duties as assigned.

Who You Are

To be successful in this job, you will be highly skilled at coalition work, strategy development, and project management and will have experience leading projects focused on social change.

Required Qualifications:

• A minimum of five years of organizing, nonprofit, project management, or government experience. Standout candidates will have at least two cycles of work on electoral, voter education, government relations, or policy campaigns.
• Strong strategic planning skills and ability to adapt to unforeseen challenges that are inherent in campaign work.
• Demonstrated ability to build consensus, negotiate, and strategically disagree within a highly collaborative work environment; ability to be respected by stakeholders, to be trusted to lead, and to practice confidentiality, discretion, and legal compliance.
• Respect for local organizations and election officials.
• Experience working with underrepresented and/or historically marginalized communities.
• Demonstrated ability to move people to action and hold them accountable with and without formal authority.
• Experience in a coalition setting. Stand-out candidates will have coalition management or professional consensus building experience, including implementing a shared vision. Ability to build strong relationships quickly and cultivate those relationships over the long term.
• Excellent communication and time management skills.
• Team player with strong interpersonal skills and sound judgment. Must be a self-starter willing to work irregular hours as needed and to travel as needed.
• Familiarity with voter and/or community education campaigns.
• Candidates must demonstrate a willingness and aptitude to seek out and acquire new skills, as well as stay current with emerging developments.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with election administration officials.
• Knowledge of and experience with the Wisconsin political and community organization landscape.
• Experience with the legislative process, including lobbying, public engagement in the legislative process, and preparing public testimony.
• Experience managing contractors, lobbyists, and/or grasstops leaders.
• Two years of staff management experience.
• Familiarity with voting rights, election administration, and democracy policies.

What You Should Know

Racial justice and equity competencies: Demonstrated awareness of how one’s life experiences influence one’s biases and assumptions. Demonstrated commitment to continual learning and ability to successfully lead a culturally responsive program. Commitment to equity and inclusion as organizational practice and culture. Understands how environmental and voting rights issues intersect with racism, economic and social inequality in the U.S. and has a passion for working to dismantle these systems. Read more about our commitment in our Guiding Principles here.

Conditions: Able to maintain a flexible schedule (some evenings and weekend hours). Able to do routine office duties such as typing and using a phone. The position can be located anywhere in Wisconsin, but must have the ability to regularly travel to Madison, as much as 2-3 times per week during specific times of the year.

Status: Full time, salaried, and classified as exempt. This is a 24 month position with the possibility of extension.

Salary and benefits: We utilize a transparent and equitable pay structure to determine salaries across the organization. The salary range for this position is $81,986-$93,986 depending on experience. We value employee health and work/life balance and offer the following benefits:

• 36 hour work week
• Generous paid time off including vacation, holidays, and two weeks of communal rest (one summer week and one winter week) totaling 44 days of PTO per year plus 12 sick/personal days per year
• 12 weeks paid parental leave
• Paid medical/emergency leave policy that is straightforward and trust-based
• Health and dental insurance with a generous employer contribution
• 401(k) retirement plan with company matching contribution after one year
• Flexible Spending Account (medical, dependent care, and transit)
• Life insurance and short-term disability insurance
• Phone stipend
• Flexibility in working hours
• Hybrid office/work from home schedule if desired
• Professional development support

Reports to: Civic Engagement Director

Please note that as a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, Wisconsin Conservation Voters employees are not eligible to participate in the Federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.