Senior Investigator, Political Extremism

Who We Are:

American Oversight is a nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog that advances truth, accountability, and democracy by enforcing the public's right to government records. We use multiple tools, backed by aggressive litigation, to fight attacks on democratic institutions, threats to civil rights and liberties, abuses of power, and erosion of government transparency. We expose and disrupt these attacks, and the officials and networks behind them, by forcing the government to turn over records officials would rather keep secret.

Since our founding in 2017, American Oversight has:

• Shut down Trump's bogus "voter fraud" commission.
• Revealed the Trump-sanctioned pressure campaign on the Ukrainian government by forcing the Trump administration to turn over records initially withheld from Congress.
• Uncovered rampant preventable deaths of immigrants in federal custody.
• Unmasked taxpayer-funded sham "audits" of the 2020 election.
• Obtained the fake electors' forged certificates submitted by fake electors during the 2020 election.
• Exposed networks of election denialists and subverters around the country.
• Halted the impeachment of a newly elected state supreme court justice in Wisconsin.
• Blocked state election board members in Georgia and Wisconsin from taking anti-democratic actions in secret.

We are committed to fighting threats of democracy at the federal, state, and local levels, using time-tested and innovative tools to expose misconduct, defend against attacks on marginalized communities, and demand accountability.

For more information, please visit our website: www.americanoversight.org

About the Role:

American Oversight is seeking a Senior Investigator, Political Extremism to join our team.

At American Oversight, we know that the abuse of government power is more than just bad policy — it’s a direct threat to national security, public safety, and the integrity of our democracy. Across the country, law enforcement agencies and national security tools are being weaponized for political purposes and used to suppress dissent — often under the guise of maintaining public order. At the same time, these institutions have repeatedly failed to confront — and in some cases have enabled — the growing threat of domestic extremism.

To confront these threats, we are seeking a bold, incisive, and mission-driven Senior Investigator to lead high-impact investigations into how far-right ideologies — including, but not limited to, Christian nationalism, white supremacy, and authoritarian populism — are shaping government policy, influencing public institutions, and fueling rampant abuses of power. This role will also contribute to American Oversight’s broader portfolio of priority issues, supporting our mission to expose how power is wielded — and misused — in ways that threaten democracy.

The Senior Investigator will use public records and open-source intelligence to expose how ideological movements that are hostile to civil rights and democratic norms are capturing or distorting the functions of government. The ideal candidate will have sharp investigative instincts, sound judgment, and a deep commitment to transparency, accountability, and the core principles of democracy.

What You Will Do:

• Develop and lead in-depth investigations that leverage public records, open-source intelligence, and subject-matter expertise to uncover hidden agendas, expose abuses of power, and reveal the political and institutional forces shaping government action.
• Craft strategic, litigation-ready public records requests to federal, state, and local agencies aimed at exposing decision-making, funding flows, and political influence.
• Analyze complex government documents and draw upon available information to identify unreported insights and emerging trends. Synthesize findings into compelling narratives, with a focus on accuracy, newsworthiness, and the broader implications for government accountability
• Draft public-facing content — including blog posts, reports, talking points, and briefing materials — that distills investigative findings into clear, contextualized, and actionable narratives.
• Represent American Oversight externally by participating in meetings, briefings, or background conversations with journalists, advocates, and allies.
• Contribute to organizational initiatives and special projects as needed, bringing an investigative lens to emerging priorities and cross-functional efforts.

What You Will Bring:

• 4+ years experience in government investigations, investigative journalism, or a related field involving in-depth investigative research and analyses.
• Demonstrated interest in how political extremism and far-right ideological movements influence law enforcement, policymaking, and public institutions.
• Experience using public records laws (e.g., federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), state open records acts) or open-source intelligence tools to support or lead investigations.
• Interest in American Oversight’s mission of government accountability and transparency; commitment to public interest advocacy.
• Exceptionally strong skills in the following areas:
  • Problem Solving and Critical Thinking: Identifies and anticipates problems and surfaces creative solutions to achieve desired outcomes; scans the landscape and connects dots among many disparate data points and situations.
  • Communication: Conveys ideas, information, and emotions clearly and effectively — both orally and in writing — adapting language to suit different audiences and contexts. Produces well-organized, error-free work that reflects a strong grasp of content and a high level of accuracy, clarity, and professionalism.
  • Project Management: Ability to multitask and independently manage multiple projects with varying scopes, timelines, and stakeholders; adapts priorities as necessary to meet organizational goals while maintaining good judgment of relative priorities.
  • Judgment and Decision Making: Makes sound, timely decisions by weighing priorities, anticipating outcomes, and aligning choices with American Oversight’s values and goals. Uses logic, experience, and context to recommend effective, mission-driven actions.
  • Strategic Thinking: Obtains information and identifies key issues and relationships relevant to achieving a goal or vision; evaluates potential risks and benefits to potential plans of action before recommending courses of action; adjusts plans as needed to achieve key objectives.
  • Collaboration: Is an inclusive, highly engaged team player; proactively seeks and provides thought partnership, assistance, and/or resources with/to colleagues.
• An understanding of and fluency in relevant news developments, the political landscape, and how public records can inform news coverage, and government action, and accountability.
• Experience conceptualizing, managing and driving complex projects, including those that are cross-functional cutting, strategic, and/or long-term.
• Experience working in and/or desire to contribute to workplaces with a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Strong technology skills with an aptitude to learn quickly, ramp up on, or test new platforms or technology (e.g., AirTable). Proficiency in Microsoft Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint); Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides) and file-sharing platforms (Dropbox).

Desired Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
• Proficiency with (FOIA) and public records requests.
• Proficiency in using FOIA and state public records laws to obtain and analyze government information.
• Experience with other publicly available datasets and information sources that could be used to enhance American Oversight’s existing accountability work.
• Experience with American Oversight’s core tools (e.g., Airtable, DocumentCloud) and/or with data analysis and visualization tools.

We encourage individuals to apply even if they do not have any of the desired qualifications.

What We Offer:

American Oversight offers its employees a generous and comprehensive benefits package that includes 80% of health, dental, and vision premiums paid by the organization, a retirement plan with a matching contribution, and remote office reimbursements for personal devices and wireless connectivity.

Location:

This is a remote position and may require occasional travel to American Oversight’s Washington, DC office for team meetings and staff retreats. Our office in Washington, DC is an optional workspace.

Salary Range:

$75,000 - $100,000 (commensurate with experience)

Timeline:

Interested applicants are encouraged to apply by Tuesday, August 5 to ensure consideration of your application. Following August 5, we will be interviewing candidates and continue to review applications on a rolling basis until the position is filled.

Our Commitment to an Inclusive Workplace:

At American Oversight, we value and strive to hire, develop, and grow a diverse and inclusive team. We are an equal opportunity employer, and encourage applications from all individuals without regard to an individual’s race, color, sex, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, family care status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state, or local laws. We strongly encourage individuals to apply for opportunities at American Oversight even if they do not have any of the desired qualifications.