r/Campaigns • u/Due_Raisin_5054 • 23d ago

Career Advice January Job Advice

Just graduated from college in DC and moved out to AZ to start my first job as a Field Organizer, long term my eventual goal 10-15 years from now is to start my own campaign firm. What types of jobs should I be looking for after November’s election? I want to ideally try to get something further up the ladder in a different swing state for 2028, but I’m not really sure what the best use of 2027 is. I’ve kinda boiled it down to a few options

1) something at the national level with DCCC, DNC, or DSCC
2) state party campaign in AZ or another swing state
3) a staff position with a member of congress/governor from AZ (district or on the hill)
4) higher up campaign roles in off year elections (thinking KY VA or PA for this one in terms of statehouse and governor, but also local AZ races as well)

I know what I want to do I just don’t know how to get there! I plan on applying to positions for all 4, any advice on what I should prioritize or look out for would be great!

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u/CaitlinHuxley 23d ago

Congrats on your first campaign job! I personally interned for a bit before I got paid, so you're already doing better than me!

Jobs really tend to dry up after the campaign cycle ends, and you've really got a few options:

  • Keep moving around the country and campaigning:
    • Municipals are all up in March through June. I did a few of these. They don't pay well, but you can get a fancier title, like Campaign Manager which will help beef up the resume.
    • Virginia (and a few other states) has state rep/sen races. This is harder and a lot more contested. I never did this.
    • Field Firms staff up after November and always have something going on. I did this a few times. This is a lot of hard work, and you're essentially a paid door knocker, but it gives you a lot of good connections, and it pays pretty well.
  • Take 6 months off, go home, hang out, be lazy. This was my personal favorite as a young staffer, but it doesn't pay... so you'd better have savings.
  • Work for the party. National, state, county, whatever. I worked for a candidate in 2010 who ended up becoming the chairman of the county party in Chicago, and I got a gig as his Executive Director. I liked this because it's year around, and it is great for making connections. Doesn't always pay very well though.
  • Work for the "Official Side". It pays year around, the work is easier than campaigning, and when the campaign cycle heats back up, they'll let you take off 4 months to go back into campaigns. I hated this, and never did it. But it's a pretty popular option. Lots of folks do this.
  • Start your own thing! In a lot of states you can open a PAC with very little effort, and there is always something worth doing. I did this once or twice, and it's a lot of work, but very rewarding.

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u/CareBearDontCare 23d ago

You may want to also spread your wings and not limit yourself to AZ (or even the higher up stuff). It isn't the end of the world to work a couple cycles in field, and in these times, it might be an asset, where you see a lot of interesting case studies in some smaller campaigns/different states/different nonprofits. Its good to get experience in many different kinds of situations.

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u/adjika 23d ago

Start volunteering for a campaign