Internship Posting for BallotPath Research Internship, Winter 2015

Call for Political Science interns at University of Washington

Position Title: Candidacy Researcher

Location: Remote with monthly scheduled face-to-face

Company: BallotPath

Company Description:

BallotPath is a civic tech startup company that has one simple purpose: to make candidacy information easier to find and act upon. Having access to getting on the ballot is essential to the democratic system. BallotPath’s mission is to take candidacy information for all elected offices and put it online in an easy to find format. We also will break the entire candidacy filing steps down into layman’s terms, so that all citizens can be empowered to run for whatever position they feel inclined to.

To be involved with Ballot Path you have to genuinely want to make a positive disruption in the world and believe that all citizens have equal rights to vote or run for office. The technology is here; it is only a matter of assembling the information and making it accessible to citizens who want to be involved. We will be working on Washington elected positions and will also be preparing to do this work nationwide—some students may be asked to continue with our nationwide efforts in a leadership/managerial role.

Responsibilities:

·         Thoroughly analyze candidacy information for each elected office assigned

·         Contact the proper election officials to gather necessary information and documents, and to verify that information is correct

·         Translate the “legalese” into laymen’s terms that the average citizen can act upon

·         Review previously collected candidacy information for accuracy

·         Proactively and positively work with other BallotPath team members (GIS/tech teams)

Schedule: Beginning early January 2015 and continuing until the work is completed, with a target date of March 15, 2015.  This internship is for 100 hours but may run slightly over.

Qualifications:

-Pursuing degree in political science or public policy preferred

-Ideally GPA 3.00 or higher

-Prefer junior grade or higher

-Interest in election procedure

-Strong writing and grammar skills

-Self starter

-Excellent organizational skills

-Proven successful experience working independently

-Ability to stick with tasks to completion

-Willingness to help team members

 We are currently working with students in the University of California system and students at the University of Oregon who will also be doing this work on their respective states.

How to Apply: Submit resume and introductory letter to Jim Cupples at jim@ballotpath.org

 Benefits: Internship credits and the opportunity to work on a civic tech project. Students will be connecting with professionals in this field. BallotPath has a positive relationship with companies such as NationBuilder, Google, Microsoft, Sunlight Foundation, and others.