Vice President, Political Affairs

What You'll Do

GIFFORDS is seeking a Vice President, Political Affairs to join our team. Leading all political and electoral initiatives, the Vice President, Political Affairs will oversee strategy and planning for all PAC and electoral programs, managing the political and coalitions teams. The Vice President will also be a senior spokesperson and representative for the organization and senior organizational liaison to electoral and advocacy organization coalition partners and candidates at all levels.

They will also serve as a member of GIFFORDS Executive Management Team, responsible for organization-wide strategic planning; execution of strategic imperatives through program and budget; sharing decision-making and providing input on cross-cutting issues; and elevating, monitoring, and addressing issues related to organizational performance.

Key Responsibilities:

• Design, lead, and execute political strategies, in coordination with staff and outside consultants aimed at electing gun safety-aligned candidates to office, who will ultimately pass critical gun reform legislation
• Oversee strategic relationships with electoral partners, peer movements, and organizations outside of the gun safety world, as part of comprehensive legislative and political strategy
• In partnership with the state and federal affairs team, steward and build high-level organizational relationships with government officials, elected leaders, candidates, principals, partners and others in service of communicating the organization's missions and goals and educating this audience on gun safety issues
• Work closely with the Vice President, State and Federal Affairs to ensure that legislative strategies at the federal and state levels are coordinated with political strategies and overarching messaging is consistent, as appropriate
• Oversee five political and coalitions staff, and numerous outside consultants working to execute the organization's legislative and political strategies
• Elevate the issue of gun safety as a key policy priority and voting issue
• Oversee the creation and analysis of new information and production of related materials to support political agendas including talking points, fact sheets, testimony, letters, reports, among other materials
• Manage political rapid response, including political communications (briefings, fact sheets, crisis support, polling, etc.) and coordination with coalitions
• Serve as a senior spokesperson and representative for the organization, especially with partners in allied ecosystems, such as labor, reproductive freedom, climate, etc
• Apply an inclusion, diversity, equity, and anti-racism lens to all aspects of the organization's political affairs work, including participating in and supporting the work of the Giffords IDEA team

Who You'll Work With

• You will report to the Executive Director.
• You will supervise the Political/Coalitions Director and a total team of five staff.

• At least fifteen years experience with electoral and political campaigns, with an emphasis on experience managing the political aspects of complex advocacy efforts.
• At least seven years' experience in effectively managing a team and a variety of outside consultants; able to motivate and inspire teams in the face of challenges.
• Demonstrated success building a team culture of inclusion, impact, and tenacity, valuing diverse voices and perspectives along with an appreciation for bipartisanship, pragmatism, and the power of unlikely alliances.
• Ability to grow GIFFORDS' brand, network, and relationships, with a track record of influencing leaders in government, politics, advocacy, etc.
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to drive decision-making and implement major projects.
• Exceptional people and project management skills and demonstrated success building, managing and mentoring teams that produce high-quality results.
• Ability to coordinate effectively with external stakeholders by building new relationships, and creating and maintaining strategic partnerships.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; demonstrated ability to convey complex issues in clear and simple terms.
• Demonstrated problem-solving skills and ability to be flexible.

Location and Work Environment

This is a full-time position based in our Washington DC office. This position requires the ability and willingness to travel up to 25% of the time, as well as interest and ability in staffing occasional weekend and evening events. This position will be expected to work in a hybrid model (2 days a week in the office, 3 days a week remotely).

Compensation

The salary range for this position is up to $225,000 annually with the exact salary depending on experience.

Benefits

Competitive benefits include employer-funded health, dental, and vision insurance; health, transit, and parking flexible spending accounts; 401k plan with 4% employer match; reimbursement for cell phone and monthly wifi stipend, 25 days of PTO annually plus paid week closure at the end of the calendar year; and ten paid federal holidays.

GIFFORDS is a nonprofit organization whose team is on a mission to save lives from gun violence. GIFFORDS is proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an environment that celebrates diversity, equity, and inclusion. People of color, trans individuals, gender non-conforming individuals, women, people with differing abilities, and veterans are strongly encouraged to apply.