Data Analytics Manager, Elections

About the role

Versant Media is seeking a Data Analytics Manager, Elections to support industry-leading political coverage across MSNBC and CNBC platforms.

Responsibilities

• Elections Data & Analytics
• Analyze vote count, polling, voter survey, and demographic data to identify and report on trends, voting patterns, and actionable editorial insights.
• Process and interpret raw election and polling datasets to produce original analysis for newsroom and audience consumption.
• Spearhead the distribution of polling insights and election guidance across broadcast, streaming, and digital news platforms.
• Maintain real-time election results and provide rapid analysis during breaking news and election-night coverage.
• Assist in evaluating race projections, statistical models, and forecasting methodologies from external vendors and partners.
• Create dashboards, data visualizations, and reporting tools that support editorial decision-making and audience engagement.
• Rigorously test election systems, including graphical, data visualization, and touchscreen software.
• Editorial Storytelling & Audience Insights
• Contribute to original explanatory journalism focused on voter behavior, turnout trends, demographic shifts, and electoral outcomes.
• Help audiences understand not only how people voted, but why they voted the way they did through data-driven storytelling and analysis.
• Translate complex statistical findings into clear, compelling talking points, graphics, and editorial guidance.
• Collaborate with producers, reporters, and editors to integrate analytics into daily and long-form political coverage.
• Support newsroom teams with polling interpretation and best practices for reporting election data responsibly and accurately.
• AI & Innovation
• Explore and implement innovative uses of AI and automation to enhance election analysis, newsroom workflows, data processing, and audience insights.
• Partner with technical and product teams to improve newsroom tools, data accessibility, and real-time analytics capabilities.
• Identify emerging technologies and analytical approaches that strengthen elections coverage and storytelling.
• Vendor & Cross-Functional Collaboration
• Work closely with vote count and polling vendors to ensure data accuracy, integrity, and quality assurance.
• Collaborate with editorial, research, operations, graphics, and engineering teams across platforms.
• Aid in maintaining standards and workflows for election data ingestion, validation, and presentation.
• Support future partnerships and initiatives related to elections, polling, and audience analytics.

Qualifications

• Required:
• Bachelor’s degree in Data Science, Statistics, Political Science, Economics, Journalism, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in political data analysis, polling, elections coverage, journalism, data science, or related fields.
• Strong understanding of the U.S. electoral system, election administration, polling methodologies, and voting trends, including familiarity with key states, districts, and counties in recent U.S. elections.
• Background in data science, statistics, quantitative analysis, or computational journalism.
• Experience in processing and analyzing raw datasets to generate original editorial insights and reporting.
• Proficiency with analytical and visualization tools such as Python, R, SQL, Tableau, Power BI, or similar platforms.
• Experience with statistical modeling, survey analysis, and large-scale data interpretation.
• Familiarity with AI, machine learning, automation tools, or generative AI applications in media or analytics environments.
• Strong editorial judgment and the ability to communicate complex findings clearly to non-technical audiences.
• Excellent collaboration and communication skills with experience working across editorial and technical teams.
• Ability to work effectively in high-pressure, deadline-driven news environments.
• Experience supporting election-night operations or real-time news coverage.
• Preferred:
• Advanced degree in Data Science, Political Science, or a related discipline.
• Experience in election data, polling analysis, or political reporting.
• Experience applying AI/ML techniques to data analysis or newsroom workflows.
• Familiarity with data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, D3.js).
• Experience working in a newsroom or media organization.

Additional Information

This position is eligible for company-sponsored benefits, including medical, dental, and vision insurance, 401(k), paid leave, tuition reimbursement, and a variety of other discounts and perks. Salary range: $130,000 - $185,000.