Arena Careers

About Contest Every Race (CER)

Contest Every Race is on a mission to make Democrats competitive everywhere. We do that by building durable political power from the ground up. We are the leading candidate recruitment program and largest long-term organizing program for Democrats in the country. We’ve had half of every local party committee apply to join our program, and have recruited more than 15,000 candidates to run against uncontested Republicans. Most of all, we support local Democratic Parties with funding and infrastructure so they can show up and work in their communities year-round.

The Role

The Chief of Staff is a senior, mission-critical organizational integrator and strategic partner for the Executive Director of Contest Every Race.

The Chief of Staff will own CER's operating cadence (quarterly planning, retreats, all-hands meetings, and performance reviews). They will draft, revise, and ship proposals, track organizational priorities and deadlines across teams in systems like Asana. They will ensure that key decisions and updates are documented and flow in both directions, keeping leadership informed and pushing relevant information down to Directors and junior staff alike. Approximately 60% of this role is focused on information management, organizational rhythm and planning and the other 40% on supporting the Executive Director with development. This is a coordination role, not a supervisory one: success looks like information and deadlines moving smoothly across the organization, not directing other people's work.

This role requires a highly organized self-starter who enjoys taking a fragment of a task and running with it, exceptional writing and communication skills, and a sophisticated understanding of the Democratic political ecosystem beyond candidate campaigns. It also requires strategic judgment, strong relationship skills, and the ability to make efficient decisions across multiple fast-moving work streams.

Responsibilities

Project Management and Inter-Team Coordination

• Track internal and external deadlines across CER’s programs and projects, ensuring deadlines set by ED and ML senior leadership are clearly communicated to Directors and that Directors have what they need to hit their goals. Surface risks or delays to the Executive Director as they arise, and decide when to escalate.
• Ensure key organizational information and decisions are documented and kept up to date at the appropriate cadence, requiring strong communication skills and coordination with CER leadership and deputy directors
• Build and improve processes, implement project management tools to optimize tracking and reporting
• Ensure relevant stakeholders, from Directors to the most junior team members, have access to the information and timelines they need, when they need it, synthesizing organization-relevant updates and pushing them down through the team as appropriate
• Represent the views of the Executive Director when needed

Organizational Rhythm & Planning

• Own CER’s operating cadence: quarterly planning, team retreats, all-hands meetings, and performance reviews
• Support alignment and communication with CEO, leadership team and potential board members
• Track organizational priorities and blockers in systems like Asana, ensuring the team is moving against them and surfacing risks early
• Manage the ED’s strategic to-do list and ensure it reflects current priorities

Development Partnership & Proposal Support

• Partner with the Development team to follow up on and execute action items after donor calls and meetings, ensuring nothing falls through the cracks
• Work between the Executive Director and the Development team to turn program ideas into final, polished proposals ready to ship to donors and funders
• Track open commitments and action items from the ED’s meetings and calls; surface what needs attention and resolve what doesn’t

The ideal candidate has operated at a senior level in a fast-moving political or nonprofit environment, working closely with a principal, and gets genuine satisfaction from building the systems and structure that make a high-performing leader and organization work better. Expert at up-managing and proactively solving problems - you follow up, change your approach, and keep pushing until you get the answers needed.

Required:

• 5-7 years of work experience, with 4+ years of relevant experience working directly with leadership in political campaigns, organizing, nonprofit operations, or government
• Proven track record supporting senior leaders or managing organizational operations
• Operational instincts: you can hold a lot of context, anticipate what’s needed, and act without being asked
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; can write clearly and concisely in someone else’s voice
• Strong relationship skills and lateral leadership, ease to influence and coordinate peers
• Fluency with Google Suite and donor/constituent CRM tools (EveryAction, NGP, or equivalent)
• Deep commitment to Democratic politics and the belief we can make the system better
• Comfort working inside an evidence-driven, experiment-first culture where not everything works and that’s okay

Preferred:

• Experience as a Campaign Manager, Chief of Staff, or Finance Director, senior executive assistant to a principal
• Understanding of Democratic Party infrastructure (county parties, state parties, national committees)
• Familiarity with organizing programs and digital mobilization programs
• Experience in development, donor relations, or major gifts fundraising

Your compensation package will include:

• Annual salary of $100,000-$110,000 (level 5), based on experience, as part of a transparent salary structure with clear levels of advancement.
• A geographic COLA based on employee location.
• A work-life stipend of $700/month pre-tax dollars to support employees during our highest intensity work period (starting August 1, prorated for partial months).
• Excellent health, dental, and vision benefits, 401(k) matching, and unlimited Paid Time Off (vacation time is limited during Election Sprint, August 24-November 3).
• Remote‑first culture with teammates across the country
• This position includes possible on-call requirements
• This position is not eligible for the collective bargaining unit.

We’re looking for candidates with a wide range of skills and experience. If you’re excited about the job, even if you don’t match all the characteristics, we encourage you to apply.

Applications submitted by July 27 will be given priority. The application process includes an exercise and 3 interviews. Due to the nature of our work, the process is moving quickly, and we hope candidates will start by early August. Applicants must be legally eligible to work in the United States. We are not able to provide sponsorship at this time.

Movement Labs is an equal opportunity employer with a commitment to economic and social justice. Women, people of color, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, and members of other historically disenfranchised populations are strongly encouraged to apply. If you require accommodations as part of the hiring process, please contact [email protected].

Applications are reviewed by our hiring team—not automated systems. Our hiring process may include AI-assisted analysis of candidate materials; however, hiring decisions are made by human reviewers.