Politics and Governing Reporter (Suburban & Elections)

The Philadelphia Inquirer is a public benefit corporation owned by the nonprofit Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Together, we’re at the center of a critical mission to create a lasting future for ambitious, engaging, and useful local journalism. We’re doing this, in part, by deepening our connection with the communities we serve. Our integrated digital and print platforms are the Philadelphia region’s largest media network. We’re passionate about building a sustainable model for indispensable local journalism, and we take pride in finding diverse, dynamic, and talented individuals to help push our team forward.

Summary:

The Philadelphia Inquirer seeks an enterprising reporter to cover regional politics, government, and election administration. This accountability-minded reporter will aggressively pursue high-impact stories in Philadelphia’s collar counties on the decisions affecting the lives of the more than 2.6 million Pennsylvanians who reside in Montgomery, Bucks, Delaware, and Chester Counties.

What You’ll Do:

Consistently break news on the moves by suburban county commissioners, build trust with readers by interrogating policy outcomes, and pursue enterprise stories on the region’s shifting political dynamics.
Self-starter prepared to pitch stories, work on deadlines and juggle coverage of multiple county governments.
Play a key role in The Inquirer’s 2024 coverage by building deep sourcing with leaders and stakeholders in these crucial counties, which will play a major role in determining the outcome of the next presidential election.
Work closely with our statehouse reporter in Harrisburg and our national political reporter to cover the collar counties’ role in driving both state and national politics.
Serve as The Inquirer’s go-to expert on election administration in Pennsylvania for the 2024 election, building sources at the state and local levels to cover how each of the 67 counties will administer the election, count votes, and handle challenges to results or election integrity.
Become an expert on the state's mail voting system, covering court cases, fact checking statements by candidates about the state's election system, and providing service journalism that helps our readers vote.
Cover Pennsylvania's implementation of automatic voter registration for the upcoming election.

Who We’re Looking For:

The ideal candidate will have three or more years of experience working in journalism. Prior experience covering politics/government and a familiarity with elections is a plus. A self-starter who is prepared to build a new beat is the best fit for this job. Candidates should be comfortable working on tight deadlines, pitching stories, and juggling coverage of multiple governmental bodies.

Applicants should be able to write clearly and know how to translate bureaucratic jargon into accessible terms for readers.
Applicants should be prepared to work collaboratively with editors and a team of fellow reporters.
The ideal candidate will have a passion for news and a keen interest in understanding the dynamics of democratic institutions. Applicants should be able to identify story angles by parsing legal filings and government documents.
The ideal candidate will be an adept interviewer who knows how to find stories by building sources both in and outside of government.
The ideal candidate will be highly organized and able to track and prioritize election deadlines, county government business, and other important information for the beat.
Candidates should be comfortable working in a digital-first newsroom. Familiarity with digital publishing tools is a plus.

The Philadelphia Inquirer is committed to attracting a diverse group of interested people to join our team, so please err on the side of applying even if you’re unsure if you meet all the qualifications. We encourage anyone to apply who shares our passion for indispensable journalism and our drive to create a sustainable business model to support it.