[Hiring] Editorial or Communications Internship @Ballotpedia

Role Description

As an intern, you will go through a similar onboarding experience to full-time Ballotpedia employees. You will learn how to code the Ballotpedia website, be oriented to Ballotpedia’s style guide, learn about what we do to prevent and detect bias in our resources, and much more. Following orientation, you will join either the Communications, Editorial, External Relations or Tech teams, working alongside full-time staff members.

As a Ballotpedia Editorial intern, you may:

• be embedded in one of our Editorial teams (i.e. Ballot Measures, Elections, Events, Law, Local Expansion, News, or Policy) and work directly with Editorial staff members;
• research elections and candidates, policy topics, legislation, ballot measures, or other topics, depending upon your assignment;
• Support creation or create original encyclopedic articles;
• assist our teams in news tracking, legislation tracking, and primary source monitoring;
• process candidate surveys;
• conduct other detailed research projects;
• participate in brainstorming sessions and planning meetings with experienced staff members;
• process new volunteer applications and work with volunteer program activities;
• assist with metrics and reporting on data collection.

As a Ballotpedia Communications intern, you may:

• assist with Ballotpedia’s social media, including creating posts and graphics;
• assist with Ballotpedia’s various email products, from daily and weekly newsletters to special campaigns;
• respond to communications from a variety of external sources;
• collect a variety of data points, tracking subscribers, and engagement;
• help develop compelling presentations, infographics and reports;
• monitor and report on media mentions;
• participate in special research projects;
• participate in promotional planning and activities;
• assist in identifying and coordinating influencer relations on social media;
• find and analyze potential social media channels for Ballotpedia to join or track;
• assist with video script writing and video image sourcing;
• assist with SEO tagging;
• opportunities to write marketing/promotional content.

Ballotpedia’s spring 2027 internship runs from Monday, January 11, 2027 through Friday, May 7, 2027. Ballotpedia’s spring internship is a part-time internship program; interns will work approximately 10-20 hours per week depending on their availability.

Ballotpedia is happy to facilitate credit for your internship experience if that is available to you. If you will be seeking credit for your internship, and if there is anything that Ballotpedia will need to do to assist you, please include that information in the same file as your cover letter.

Qualifications

• Strong research and analytical skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a team environment.
• Experience or coursework in political science, communications, journalism, or related fields.

Requirements

• Must have a well-functioning computer with Internet access.
• Familiarity with Google Applications (Gmail, Google Calendar, Drive and more) is helpful.

Benefits

• Compensation at $15.00 per hour.
• If the minimum wage in your area is more than $15.00 per hour, you will be compensated per your area’s minimum wage.

To Apply

To apply, click on “Apply for this job” below and fill out the form.

Please provide the following in PDF format:

• résumé
• cover letter which states your area of preference (Editorial or Communications), including the contact information for two professional references
• neutral writing sample (under five pages)

Note: please include this in the same file as your cover letter.

Please ensure that either your resume or your cover letter includes your current address. Applications that do not include a current address will not be accepted.

If you are hired for this position, Ballotpedia participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S.

Company Description

Ballotpedia is a mission-driven organization dedicated to providing Americans with accurate, relevant, and reliable information about politics, elections, and public policy. Our goal is to close the ballot information gap and help voters make informed decisions. We value innovation, humility, hunger, and a collaborative spirit and are committed to continuously improving our offerings to better serve our audiences, readers, and candidates.