Elections Assistant - Customer Service

Elections Assistant - Customer Service

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.

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.

In these positions you will:

• 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.

Each Customer Service position on the team will work together on similar projects. However, certain positions will have extra training and specialized duties, such as:

• 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.