Elections Assistant - Absentee Mail
Hennepin County
FreshPosted Mar 24
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Posted: March 24, 2026 (1 day ago)
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Elections Assistant - Customer Service
Hennepin County
Elections Division
Location
Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55487
Salary
$47,387.84 - $71,633.47
per year
Type
Closes
April 1, 2026
SES Pay Grade
Base salary range: $147,649 - $221,900
Typical requirements: Executive-level leadership experience. Senior executive qualifications required.
Note: Actual salary includes locality pay (15-40%+ depending on location).
Job Description
Summary
This temporary job involves helping voters by answering questions over phone, email, and mail, entering data into systems, and handling administrative tasks for the elections office through the 2026 election cycle.
It's a good fit for someone who enjoys customer service, stays neutral on politics, and is interested in how government elections work.
Bilingual speakers in languages like Somali or Spanish are especially welcome and may get extra pay.
Key Requirements
- Strong customer service skills for communicating with residents and voters
- Non-partisan attitude and ability to provide neutral information
- Proficiency in data entry and using systems like the Statewide Voter Registration System (SVRS)
- Technical and analytical skills for troubleshooting inquiries and processes
- Administrative experience in handling mail, email, phone, and documentation
- Bilingual proficiency in English plus Somali, Spanish, Oromo, Hmong, or Sign Language (preferred, with assessment for extra duties)
- Ability to work hybrid (remote and on-site in Minneapolis) with flexible hours and occasional overtime
Full Job Description
Hennepin County’s Elections department is seeking to fill three temporary Customer Service Specialist positions on their Clerk and Voter Services team. The Customer Service Specialists will assist in managing the public phone lines, mail, and email inboxes through the 2026 election cycle. These positions will primarily consist of communicating with and responding to inquiries from residents and voters, performing data entry, and other administrative duties to support program areas throughout the Elections department.Customer Service Specialists must be non-partisan and able to provide excellent customer service, use technical and analytical skills, and perform a variety of administrative functions.
The Elections department is looking for applicants interested in election administration, government processes, and interaction with residents.
Candidates Bilingual in English, Somali, Spanish, Oromo, Hmong, or American or Universal Sign Language are encouraged to apply. Bilingual candidates who pass a language assessment may qualify for additional bilingual duties and pay.Current Hennepin County employees who refer a candidate hired into an open competitive position may be eligible for a $500 referral bonus. For more information visit employee referral program.
Find us here at upcoming career fairs!
Location and hours:
These positions are hybrid and will be performed both on-site at 625 4th Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55415 and remote as job duties require. Work hours will be Monday through Friday, between 8 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. with some flexibility. Occasional mandatory overtime will be required.
While this position is designated as hybrid, based on current requirements hires must reside in or relocate to Minnesota or Wisconsin.
New Employee Orientation (NEO) for all new benefit-earning employees is in-person in downtown Minneapolis. Details about NEO will be provided upon hire.
About these position types:
These are limited duration (temporary) full-time, benefit earning positions with an expected start date of June 1, 2026 and expected end date of December 31, 2026.
These positions are internally classified as Office Specialist III.
Click here to view the job classification specification.
- Maintain voter inquiries via mail, email, fax, and telephone.
- Triage incoming calls from city and school district clerks; assist with solutions and escalate to other staff, when necessary.
- Address and resolve various voter concerns regarding Elections government processes, services, and policies.
- Perform data entry, both in the Statewide Voter Registration System (SVRS) and internal records.
- Assist with the documentation of customer service processes and procedures.
- Support all other department program areas, as assigned.
Data Support Focus:
- Crosstrain with the absentee ballot mail team to troubleshoot data entry questions with mailed ballots; process undeliverable ballots; maintain and update data on completed tasks.
- Research and troubleshoot voter registration and absentee ballot application questions; generate reports in the Statewide Voter Registration System.
- Support the voter registration team in post-election data entry work, as needed.
Customer Care and De-escalation Focus:
- Support voters who call or email and require extra care in conversation; support repeat callers in addressing concerns, document repeat callers and incident reports.
- Contact voters with sensitive issues including rejected or undeliverable ballots; respond to questions or concerns.
- Receive and respond to clerk calls with compassion and respect; maintain list of common clerk concerns for quick responsiveness.
Need to have:
- One of the following:
- Two or more years of office clerical experience.
- Completion of two or more years of post-high school education.
- An approved combination of education (3 semester credits = 1 month) and experience to equal two years or more.
- 18 months or more of office clerical experience and completion of the Office Specialist Pathway Training program.
- One year or more of office clerical experience and completion of the Human Services Pathway Training program.
Nice to have:
- Experience:
- Providing customer service in-person, online, and/or over the phone to the public.
- Working for a government entity in an elections role.
- Performing data entry from paper and/or electronic documents into a computer system.
- Using Microsoft Office in a work setting (Excel, Outlook, Word, Teams, etc.).
- Ability to:
- Follow instructions completely and accurately.
- Work collaboratively with a diverse group of team members.
- Work with great attention to detail.
- De-escalate conflict and self-regulate in difficult situations.
- Provide non-partisan, impartial, and excellent customer service.
- Use problem solving techniques to complete daily work.
- Knowledge of election statutes, rules, department policy and procedures.
Candidates with fluency in another language in addition to English are encouraged to apply. Bilingual candidates who pass a language assessment may qualify for additional bilingual pay and duties.
About the department:
Hennepin County Elections works with partners at the federal, state, and local level to provide voting services to over one million eligible county residents in over 400 polling places throughout the county. Program areas include voter registration, absentee voting, voter education and engagement, local election clerk training, voting technology, election day operations, results reporting and certification, recounts and audits, candidate filing, campaign finance reporting, violation investigations, and elections data stewardship.
Hennepin County Elections works with partners at the federal, state, and local level to provide voting services to over one million eligible county residents in over 400 polling places throughout the county. Program areas include voter registration, absentee voting, voter education and engagement, local election clerk training, voting technology, election day operations, results reporting and certification, recounts and audits, candidate filing, campaign finance reporting, violation investigations, and elections data stewardship.
About Hennepin County:
Hennepin is the largest county government organization in Minnesota. Our employees work every day to improve the health, safety and quality of life for our residents and communities. All of our jobs align with our mission to serve residents through transformative services that eliminate disparities, eliminate inequities, and create opportunity for all and our vision of a community where all people are healthy, all people are valued, and all people thrive.
Our employees receive a combination of competitive benefits and positive workplace culture not found at other organizations. This includes meaningful work that impacts our community, competitive pay, work-life balance, a variety of benefits and opportunities to grow. Learn more at The Bridge(login as Guest).
Hennepin County envisions an organization where our commitment to diversity and the elimination of disparities is fundamental in providing excellent service to our community.
Your future. Made here.
This posting may be used to fill current and future vacancies.
Watch this video for application best practices and tips.
Invitations to interview will be based upon an assessment of education and experience. Final candidates will be required to complete a reference and criminal background check.
If you have any questions, please contact:
Talent Acquisition division
Hennepin County Human Resources department
Submit a request at hennepin.us/ask-hr or 612-348-7855
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