Elections Testing 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, unbiased news 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 or operations engineer who is excited about working in a newsroom and focusing on politics and elections to oversee elections testing. In this role, you will be responsible for our extensive efforts to provide internal stakeholders and Elections Services customers with tests and simulations of our vote count and related data services. Your mission will be to ensure they are able to practice and prepare fully for election days and know precisely what to expect from AP once polls have closed. This position on our Elections Tabulation and Research team is based in Washington, D.C., although exceptional candidates in other locations will be considered. It is covered by AP’s agreement with the News Media Guild.

 

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, and with input and requirements from our customers, you will design, schedule and implement the vote count and data tests that simulate elections and allow users of our Election Services products to prepare both technically and editorially for elections.

 

To be sure, we’re looking for someone who will do more than simply keep the testing trains running on time. We’re seeking a new teammate who can gather requirements from a diverse group of stakeholders, use existing and iterative tooling to design election simulations that meet those requirements, and guide users as they ingest our test data and use it to prepare their systems and teams for the rigors of election night. You’re the kind of person who isn’t intimidated by edge cases; instead, you revel in the unexpected and helping others eliminate their “unknown unknowns.”

 

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 user of our elections data, anticipate their needs and design a test and simulation program to meet them.

 

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience, such as at least one year of full-time work as a project manager or operations engineer. 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: We’re looking for someone with strong coordination and communication skills who is able to understand and deliver on the needs of a wide and diverse group of stakeholders – from internal users seeking to perform quality control checks before data is released to customers, to those customers who expect our test data to be flawless so they can perform their own tests against it. You’ll be able to prioritize the needs of those stakeholders and design a test program that serves the sometimes competing needs of all who consume our data.

 

You thrive in a fast-paced environment: During a busy election season, AP will execute multiple tests each day to prepare for different upcoming elections and to serve different customers and users. While experience working directly with customers is not required, we expect that’s a skill you’ll develop and use often.

 

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 can