Elections Director, Deputy

Are you an experienced elections or public administration professional with a strong commitment to public service? New Hanover County is seeking an Elections Deputy Director to support the Elections Director in overseeing daily operations and ensuring the successful delivery of election services. This role provides staff supervision and assists with procedural and technical improvements, voter education programs, public communications, in-person voting operations, Board of Elections meeting preparation, and election official training. The Deputy Director ensures continuity of operations in the Director’s absence and directly supervises teams responsible for voter registration, outreach, and logistics, maintaining a high level of customer service during large-scale election events and periods of increased demand.

New Hanover County, located on the North Carolina coast with a population of over 240,000 and approximately 183,400 registered voters. The mission of the NHC Board of Elections is to provide the highest level of professional standards to ensure accurate, honest, and fair elections through accountability and integrity and to provide all citizens our services in the most efficient, effective, and timely manner. The New Hanover County Board of Elections administers elections with the highest commitment to accuracy, integrity, and public trust. The department oversees all aspects of election administration, including voter registration, polling site operations, ballot preparation, and election result certification while ensuring compliance with all applicable election laws. With an annual operating budget of approximately $2,123,000, the department maintains a strong focus on transparency, collaboration, and voter confidence, working closely with local, state, and federal partners to ensure fair and accessible elections for all citizens.

Key Responsibilities include: 

• Supervises staff, prioritizes, and assigns work; conducts performance evaluations; and ensures staff is trained. 
• Develops and implements procedural and technical improvements.
• Provides assistance and develops and conducts voter education and registration drive programs in cooperation with candidates, political parties and civic organizations.
• Ensures Elections website is updated properly following all statutory and administrative guidelines. Develops and integrates enhancements to improve website.
• Provides supervision to the Elections Education & Communications Coordinator and Programs & Outreach Coordinator overseeing social media, marketing, and press releases.
• Provides overall operational support and oversight of election official training, in-person voting processes to include voter registration, One-Stop voting, Election Day voting, post-election processes, and reconciles and reviews provisional ballots.
• Assists the Director in fulfillment of Public Records Requests, including Election Events Records, Party Requests, Press Requests.
• Supervises Voter Registration Processes, providing supervisory support to the Registrar to ensure usual, special, and annual voter registration processes are performed. This includes, execution of special mailings and annual list maintenance tasks, processing same day registrations during early voting, and management of incomplete submissions
• Oversees Community Engagement and Education (in-person and virtual), as well as management of processes related to board meetings and special event press releases.
• Oversees Inventory Management and Distribution and provides supervisory support to the Elections Logistics Specialist.
• Ensures continuity of operations in the event of the Director’s absence.
• Maintains contact with county municipalities concerning election matters, prepares the budget and conducts other election business.
• Performs other duties required of a county elections director by NC statutes and by the State or County Boards of Election.
• Performs work with regular and predictable attendance consistently meeting the scheduling needs as required by the county.
• Performs work during emergency/disaster situations.
• Performs other duties of a similar nature or level. 

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Knowledge of and principles and practices related to the area of assignment; applicable local, state, and federal statutes; Specifically, N.C. General Statute Chapter 163, as well as the rules, orders, and directives of the State Board of Elections; basic management principles; comprehensive understanding of in-person voting procedures; department-wide procedures and their implications on the in-person voting process. basic human resources and performance evaluation principles; community resources and organizations; basic finance principles; marketing and promotion principles; educational practices, especially pertaining to adults.

Skill in using a computer and related software programs; using general office equipment; managing databases; preparing formal documents and reports; assessing client needs; preparing and creating schedules; developing and implementing programs; supervising and training employees, volunteers, and clients; communication, interpersonal skills as applied to interaction with coworkers, supervisor, the general public, etc. sufficient to exchange or convey information and to receive work direction.

New Hanover County is dedicated to the recruitment and recognition of a talented and diverse workforce that is committed to public service. Our shared values of professionalism, innovation, equity, integrity, stewardship and accountability guide the way we conduct ourselves and deliver services to our customers. New Hanover County celebrates diversity in our employees’ backgrounds, beliefs, identities, and abilities, while supporting growth opportunities for all. Our talented team has a passion for providing care and services that effect change on the everyday lives of the citizens they encounter. The differences that unite us are a reflection of the community we serve. If this sounds like an organization that models the values you uphold, we invite you to join our team at New Hanover County.  

Hours:
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM, Monday - Friday.  Overtime is common and should be anticipated during election-related events.
Must be available to report for emergency work assignment during emergency situations.

Employment Type:
Full-time, Exempt

Salary Information:
The hiring range for this position is $62,126.00 to $83,870.50 annually plus a competitive benefits package. Salary will be determined based on qualifications, internal equity, budget, and market considerations.

New Hanover County offers:

• Employer paid 401k contributions;
• Retirement plan through the NC Retirement system;
• Flex time and telework availability, depending on your position;
• Paid sick and personal leave + 13 paid holidays per year;
• Paid parental leave;
• Paid community services leave to give back to our community;
• Education leave to obtain a degree within your line of work; 
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance + many other insurance options; 
• Onsite, employer-paid health and wellness clinic;
• Professional development trainings & leadership initiatives; 
• Opportunities to make a difference in your community;
• And so much more!

We invite you to explore our careers page at www.nhcgov.com/careers for additional information about why New Hanover County is a great place to work, and to check out our competitive benefits package. 

Vision Insurance, 401(k) Plan, Retirement Plan, Paid Time Off, Paid Sick Leave, Parental Leave, Professional Development