Central Iowa County Canvass Director

Food-; Des Moines (IA); On-site; USD 45,000 - 53,000; Full time

Job summary

Food & Water Watch seeks a Central Iowa Canvass Director to lead a field operation educating Iowans on water pollution and the cancer crisis. The role reports to the Iowa Field Director and coordinates with organizing staff to run a canvass reaching tens of thousands of doors.

The position is full-time, temporary, based in Polk County, and starts as soon as possible. Salary ranges from $45,000 to $53,300 depending on experience; position runs through November 6, 2026.

Qualifications

• At least one election cycle canvassing experience (electoral or issue organizing).
• Familiarity with VAN or a similar voter database tool.

Responsibilities

• Recruit and hire canvassers.
• Train canvassers to conduct canvassing conversations.
• Cutting and assigning turf.
• Analyze canvasser performance and run VAN reports.
• Quality control to maximize canvasser success and minimize fraudulent data.
• Schedule and track hours; ensure timely payments.
• Complete at least one canvass shift per week.
• Ensure a daily transportation plan for canvassers; arrange rental cars if needed.
• Identify meetup locations for canvass sendoffs.

Skills

Election canvassing experience

VAN familiarity

Tools

VAN

Job description

Food & Water Watch is a leading national organization that mobilizes regular people to build political power to move bold and uncompromised solutions to the most pressing food, water, and climate problems of our time. We work to protect people’s health, communities, and democracy from the growing destructive power of the most powerful economic interests.

About Food & Water Watch:

Food & Water Watch is organizing on some of the biggest issues Iowans face today, like holding factory farms accountable for their pollution and advocating for clean drinking water. Recent polling has shown that Iowans consider the state’s water and cancer crises to be very serious concerns, on par with affordability.

Food & Water Watch has been working for years, organizing to build power in Iowa. Our work gets real results. In 2025, we defeated the so-called “Cancer Gag Act” that was pushed on the Iowa legislature by Bayer and Big Ag. This bill would have prevented farmers, workers, and anyone affected from exercising their right to hold companies accountable for failing to warn them of health risks. We also played a role in passing legislation blocking carbon pipeline companies from using eminent domain to take property from landowners.

About the position:

The Central Iowa Canvass Director will report to the Iowa Field Director and will work with other staff on the Iowa Organizing and administrative teams to support Food & Water Watch’s work. The position will run a canvass operation that knocks on tens of thousands of doors to educate and engage Iowans on the issue of water pollution and the associated cancer crisis facing our state. This is a full-time temporary position starting as soon as possible, running through November 6.

Salary: $45,000 - $53,300 dependent on experience.

Location: This position will be based in Polk County.

FLSA Status: Exempt

This position will start as soon as possible, running through November 6, 2026.

We are not planning to rent office space for this campaign. Instead, we plan on running the canvass remotely, with regular meetups in the field for canvassers to get training and materials.

Responsibilities and Duties:

• Recruit and hire canvassers.
• Training canvassers to effectively conduct canvassing conversations
• Cutting and assigning turf.
• Analyzing canvasser performance, including running VAN reports, tracking petitions and pledge cards collected.
• Quality control to maximize canvasser success and minimize submission of fraudulent canvass data
• Scheduling and tracking hours, and working with the Finance team to ensure canvassers are paid in a timely fashion.
• Completing at least one canvass shift themselves each week.
• Ensuring a daily transportation plan for canvassers to get to turf and back, including acquiring rental cars when necessary.
• Identify meetup locations for canvass sendoffs.

Qualifications:

At least one election cycle canvassing experience (either electoral or issue organizing works!)

Familiarity with VAN or a similar voter database tool.

Preferred (but not necessary) qualifications:

• One election cycle canvass directing or one year organizing on an issue advocacy campaign.
• Experience training others.
• Experience with using Microsoft Excel/Google Sheets to track work.
• Knowledge of the region.
• Relationships with organizers and potential canvassers in this area.

Desired skills/interests:

• Strong interest in Food & Water Watch issues and commitment to social change.
• Strong verbal and written communication and time management skills.

Position open until filled.

Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment visas.

We will review your application and if we feel that your knowledge, skills and abilities are potentially a good match for our organization, we will be in contact with you.

Food and Water Watch is an equal opportunity employer who encourages applications from women, people of color, LGBTQ individuals, individuals with disabilities, and other members of underrepresented groups. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this role.

Food & Water Watch (FWW) is committed to the health and safety of its staff members. Moreover, FWW, as an organization, promotes science-based policy. Science clearly shows that unvaccinated populations drive the spread of the coronavirus and the emergence of new variants, and that unvaccinated people are more likely to contract COVID and experience severe symptoms. FWW requires new staff to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination, subject to availability, unless they receive an approved religious or medical accommodation.