Elections Research Products Editor (Newsperson)

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiasednews in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world's population sees AP journalism every day.

The Associated Press seeks a skilled project manager, researcher or reporter/editor with experience in editorial research and U.S. elections to serve as an elections research products editor. In this role, and as a leader in the tabulation and research group of AP's Elections Services team, you will have the primary responsibility of shaping our research into U.S. elections - from candidate backgrounds to election laws to advance vote statistics - into the products consumed by audiences and used by our customers. This position is covered by AP's agreement with the News Media Guild and is based in Washington, D.C., although exceptional candidates in other locations will be considered.

Responsibilities: Reporting to the director of tabulation and research, you'll join a team of researchers, data scientists, developers, journalists and others who make up AP's Elections Services team. Working with those colleagues, you will help design, conduct and use election research data to prepare our overall elections services team for election night and ensure our customers and internal AP stakeholders have the information they need to achieve success in telling the story of U.S. elections.

Our existing elections research efforts are extensive in scope and level of detail, with outputs that include human readable research reports, API reports and structured data that set critical internal variables in our election night systems. Our efforts focus on pre-election, post-election, internal and external facing research. You'll be part of a team that plans AP's operations around state and federal elections and manages the compilation of a wide variety of elections-related data, including information on candidates seeking office and the offices to which they aspire. You'll coordinate closely with the team that does that work.

You'll have the additional responsibility of shaping how that research is delivered and presented: programmatically via our elections API, via written reports shared in spreadsheets and PDFs, in digital-native formats online and in ways we've yet to discover. You understand that effort to create research and data that isn't consumed is effort that's wasted. You'll be relentless in the pursuit of presentation and delivery pathways that match the quality of the data itself.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience, such as at least one year of full-time work as a project manager, editorial researcher or reporter. Experience working in the newsroom is a plus but not a requirement.
• All applicants must be able to work in the U.S. or be able to gain permission to do so.
• AP's Elections Services team uses a variety of proprietary tools in its operations, but strong proficiency with the Microsoft Office suite of tools - including Copilot - and OpenAI's Chat GPT is preferred.
• The ability and willingness to work at night and on weekends, as AP is a 24/7 operation and polls almost always close after the end of the business day.
• Advanced-level professional competency in written and spoken English. Professional competency in a language besides English is a plus.

Preferred Qualifications: First and foremost, we're looking for a researcher who knows where to find information about U.S. elections and is obsessed with ensuring that information is accurate. You embrace the ideal that smart work before Election Day ensures correct work once polls close. You thrive in a fast-paced environment: During a busy election season, AP will count the vote in thousands of races contested by tens of thousands of candidates.

We're also looking for someone with experience in translating raw data into products for end users, such as reporters, editors, developers and others in a customer newsroom. You think broadly about data and how it might be used.

You might not have extensive experience in U.S. elections, but you've got the ability to learn quickly from subject matter experts and become one yourself. What's essential is your ability to place yourself in the role of a consumer of our elections research, anticipate their needs, and design and execute the delivery pathways and presentations that meet those needs.

You understand that there's always more to know, and you expect to learn from your teammates in addition to sharing what you know. You're looking for a collegial environment that involves consistent communication, and you enjoy sharing ideas with people from diverse backgrounds, areas of expertise and experience.

We will consider strong candidates who do not meet every listed qualification. You may use a cover letter to describe the unique qualifications you would bring to this role.

This position is covered by The Associated Press' contract with the News Media Guild, which provides for an annual salary for Class A staff of between $53,477 and $85,214 based on location and years of professional experience. Additional compensation is negotiable based on a job candidate's skills, qualifications and market location.Employees are eligible to participate, according to the terms of the official plan documents, in a 401(k) plan and employer-sponsored health insurance plan, and are eligible for paid time off and holidays in accordance with AP policy.

Application deadline is August 11, 2025, at 11:59PM EST.

AP seeks to build an inclusive organization grounded in respect for differences. We support all aspects of diversity and provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, marital status, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, status as a veteran, or other characteristic protected by law.