Description

Campaign Manager - Scope of Work

This role will lead the day-to-day management of Alaska’s 2026 statewide ballot campaign to defend the state’s campaign finance, open primaries, and ranked-choice voting system from repeal. This role is central to our effort to protect reforms that have reshaped Alaska’s democracy. The effect of the Alaska system - pragmatism over extremism, broad appeal rather than narrow partisan interests, and cross-partisan collaboration - has been a widely touted antidote to the path of divisiveness and polarization that has gripped the lower-48. More on how the system operates and its impact in the links below:

• Open Primaries and Ranked Choice Voting Strengthened Moderate Republicans in Alaska’s Legislature | Sightline Institute 
• How open primaries and ranked-choice voting can help break partisan gridlock | PBS News
• The Alaska Model For Democracy In Elections – Harvard Journal on Legislation  
• Murkowski, Peltola cross party lines to endorse each other in tight Alaska races 

The Campaign Manager will oversee staff, consultants, and coalition partners to ensure that the ballot campaign is organized and on track. They will manage execution of the campaign plan and budget, ensuring coordination across communications, compliance, field, and data. The Campaign Manager will also play a critical role in building out and mobilizing the cross-partisan coalition that this campaign will require in order to win. 

Duties & Areas of Activity: 

• Campaign Leadership
  • Serve as the day-to-day lead of the Ballot Campaign, accountable to the General Consultant and Executive Committee.
  • Translate strategic objectives into tactical execution.
  • Hire, onboard, and manage campaign staff and vendors.
  • Convene and facilitate the Steering Committee, ensuring partner accountability and alignment.
  • Cultivate and model a team culture that is hardworking, professional, collaborative, and feedback-oriented.
• Strategic Execution
  • Develop and update campaign workplans, dashboards, and calendars.
  • Manage internal operations, including communications, compliance, data, and field coordination.
  • Oversee paid staff, including deputy campaign manager, organizing director, comms director, as well as junior staff as applicable.
    • Support hiring and onboarding processes for these roles.
  • Coordinate legal, communications, and signature-blocking strategies in tandem with specialized leads.
• Coalition & Stakeholder Management
  • Build and maintain relationships across diverse constituencies, with special emphasis on conservative validators, Alaska Native communities, labor, and industry.
  • Act as a public-facing representative of the campaign, working with funders, stakeholders, and media as needed.
• Accountability & Reporting
  • Provide regular updates to the General Consultant, Executive Committee, and funders.
  • Track and evaluate campaign performance, adjusting tactics based on research, polling, and field data.
  • Communicate effectively, give and receive feedback, and adopt a learner mindset to develop new skills. 

Distribution of Time: 

• 50% Project and Staff Management
  • Help draft and update the campaign plan.
  • Manage and update the budget and provide regular updates to the Executive Committee.
  • Work to track campaign progress against the campaign plan and timeline, coordinating across the various consultants, vendors, and campaign staff to ensure that all objectives are met on time.
  • Manage full-time campaign staff, volunteers, vendors, and consultants towards the objectives delineated in the campaign plan. 
• 25% Coalition Building and Internal Communications
  • Maintain relationships with current coalition partners, pursue opportunities to expand and reach new coalition members.
  • Leverage campaign’s role in local and statewide spaces to build partnerships and coalition across leaders, non-profits, IE groups, and businesses
  • Maintain current knowledge of political dynamics and relevant campaigns throughout the state
• 25% Communications strategy, messaging and direction
  • Develop messaging frameworks that align with project goals and target audiences, and regularly update them in response to political dynamics
  • Draft and edit core campaign communications, including talking points, press releases, scripts, digital content, and fundraising language.
  • Provide direction and oversight on paid, earned, and digital media strategy to ensure consistency of message and brand.
  • Coordinate with the internal campaign team and external partners on message discipline, rapid response, and proactive narrative-building.
  • Coordinate with research, creative and media teams to ensure that content production reflects strategic priorities and campaign tone.

Desired Qualifications: 
We are looking for a candidate with at least four of these six criteria:

• Supervisory/Project Management Experience - You have previously managed staff, contractors and/or vendors to complete large-scale projects and achieve defined goals, and/or scaled a team.
• Alaska Connection - You are connected to Alaska and have some familiarity with the Alaskan political landscape.
• Prior Political Campaigns - You’ve worked on multiple political campaigns and have managed or served in a senior role on a political candidate campaign or ballot initiative.
• Systems Management Experience - You can adhere to established systems and structures, and enjoy creating them where they don’t yet exist.
• Project Management Experience - You are a hard worker and have a successful track record of setting up and managing systems for multi-faceted projects or programs.
• Coalition-Building - You have exceptional negotiation skills and are good at bringing together and working with a wide variety of people and organizations, building consensus and managing strategic partnerships.  

Additional skills:

• You’re fluent in Google Workspace, particularly Sheets, Docs & Drive and have experience with project management software.
• You’re organized, self-directed, and able to work virtually and independently within multidisciplinary teams.
• You thrive on campaign energy and are comfortable working long, irregular hours in a fast-paced environment under tight deadlines.
• You can set and achieve aggressive goals, balancing a big picture vision with day-to-day task management.
• You have prior ballot initiative campaign experience, if not managing one.

Details
Title: Campaign Manager
Reports to: General Consultant
Location: Anchorage, AK (Position requires in-person and remote work)
Job type: Full-Time Exempt (Permanent role subject to the outcome of a bi-directional check in after 6 month period)
Start date: January 2026 (flexible)

How to apply
Please email a resume and cover letter to admin@shipcreekgroup.com. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered. 

Requirements

Desired Qualifications: 
We are looking for a candidate with at least four of these six criteria:

• Supervisory/Project Management Experience - You have previously managed staff, contractors and/or vendors to complete large-scale projects and achieve defined goals, and/or scaled a team.
• Alaska Connection - You are connected to Alaska and have some familiarity with the Alaskan political landscape.
• Prior Political Campaigns - You’ve worked on multiple political campaigns and have managed or served in a senior role on a political candidate campaign or ballot initiative.
• Systems Management Experience - You can adhere to established systems and structures, and enjoy creating them where they don’t yet exist.
• Project Management Experience - You are a hard worker and have a successful track record of setting up and managing systems for multi-faceted projects or programs.
• Coalition-Building - You have exceptional negotiation skills and are good at bringing together and working with a wide variety of people and organizations, building consensus and managing strategic partnerships.  

Additional skills:

• You’re fluent in Google Workspace, particularly Sheets, Docs & Drive and have experience with project management software.
• You’re organized, self-directed, and able to work virtually and independently within multidisciplinary teams.
• You thrive on campaign energy and are comfortable working long, irregular hours in a fast-paced environment under tight deadlines.
• You can set and achieve aggressive goals, balancing a big picture vision with day-to-day task management.
• You have prior ballot initiative campaign experience, if not managing one.