General Registrar and Director of Elections

• Plan and direct the operations and activities of the voter registration office.
  1. Provide leadership to paid staff and volunteers on all elections procedures; and supervise paid staff and officers of election for the conduct of primary, special, and general elections, and assist in ascertaining the results of the elections.
  2. Assess the current and future needs of Portsmouth citizens, establishing a schedule to meet those needs and managing all phases of the registration process.
• Develop plans to encourage the registration of eligible voters.
• Oversee the registration process including eligibility determination and denial notification process in accordance with Department of Elections guidelines.
• Manage the department budget to determine financial needs and provide justification to city management and state officials to obtain the funding needed to maintain an effective election program.
• Plan and participate in programs to educate the public about voter registration and election processes including speaking to civic and school groups.
• Oversee the design and development of training programs as well as the training of paid staff, election officials and volunteers to ensure proper and efficient performance of their duties.
• Oversee the maintenance of all official voter registration records, correspondence files, and pollbooks in accordance with established record retention guidelines in a manner to permit timely response to detailed inquiries from external constituencies; ensure that procedures are in place to maintain accuracy of pollbooks, available to the precincts, and ensure data is accurately transferred from pollbooks to the Department of Elections after each election for voting credit purposes.
• Ensure that adequate office and warehouse space is allocated to support staff and volunteers and are adequate in size and layout with sufficient parking to support the voting process.
• Ensure election equipment necessary to conduct elections and precinct voting locations are readily accessible to voters. 
• Oversee the maintenance of the voter registration system to ensure that changes to election districts, precincts, and polling places are up to date and that affected voters are notified in a timely manner.
• Assist with the design and preparation of ballots for primary, special, and general elections.
• Oversee candidate filings and campaign financing reporting aligned with state law and Department of Elections guidelines.
• Carry out provisions enumerated in section 24.2-114 of the Code of Virginia.
• Monitor, track, and analyze federal and state legislative initiatives and voting trends to project the potential future impact on the locality and to provide meaningful information to legislators when appropriate.
• Attend training provided by the Department of Elections.
• Oversee the preparation of press releases, legal notices, correspondence, and manuals.
• Attend meetings and consult with Electoral Board.
• Perform other job duties requiring skills, knowledge and physical requirements as demanded by those duties described or based on workloads and department needs.

• Knowledge of laws, principles, and practices of election administration and voter registration specifically in Virginia;
• Knowledge of and experience in management and the utilization of supervision principles, concepts, and techniques; local government budgeting processes; policy formation;
• Implementation and evaluation; security best practices, including both physical and cybersecurity. Knowledge of local government policies, procedures and processes is a plus;
• Strong leadership skills, including negotiation, communication both within and outside of the department;
• Proficiency utilizing available technologies to improve and enhance current processes, and to use initiative and innovation to explore emerging technologies. 
• Knowledge of office management to include efficiency on 10-key calculators; and typing skills as well as management of office management staff is a plus;
• Ability to establish effective policies and procedures: make formal presentations and   present information clearly and concisely verbally and in writing; and interpret laws, regulations, policies and procedures; and make appropriate decisions accordingly;
• Ability to interact with the general public, governmental officials, with tact and courtesy, and  to work under pressure and adapt to rapidly changing circumstances;
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with city, state, federal, media, non-profit, community, private and other related entities;
• Planning, developing, coordinating, and directing the activities of the Office of the General Registrar, including voter registration, candidate processing and filing; pre-election and Election Day  voting; ballot design; equipment programming and testing; poll work recruitment and training; and voter outreach efforts to include acquisition of various voting sites and coordination of voting day activities at each polling site and/or precincts;
• Coordinating and consulting with the City Attorney and the Commonwealth's Attorney as  needed on legal issues;
• Serving the community and professional organizations as a subject matter expert on elections and election administration; and representing the City at regional, state, and local workshops and conferences.

QUALIFICATIONS, SPECIAL CERTIFICATIONS AND LICENSES

The successful candidate will have a combination of education and experience equivalent to a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration, Management, Business Administration, or related area and significant experience working in state and/or local government administration with a strong emphasis on voter registration and election administration with at least five years in a documented supervisory position is preferred but not required. The candidate must be a registered voter in the Commonwealth of Virginia, be or become a City of Portsmouth resident, have a valid Virginia driver’s license, and be able to obtain a notary commission.

The General Registrar and Director of Elections is required to receive certification through the Department of Elections’ Certification Program within 12 months of appointment and any subsequent reappointment, unless the Department of Elections has granted a waiver. 

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Proven ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing; extensive knowledge of specialized computer programs and office management; demonstrated skills in customer service; demonstrated knowledge of State of Virginia Election laws and codes; demonstrated ability to supervise others, the ability to train and teach others in procedures specific to elections; and a demonstrated ability to prepare and manage a departmental budget.

Please provide a resume addressing how your education, experience and training meet the requirements under the selection criteria which highlight your accomplishments in these areas.

Ordinarily this is a 40 hour per week position with the incumbent working additional hours leading up to and after Election Days, including some evenings and weekends.