Job Specifications
Position Title: Senior Research & Data Analyst
Position Status: Temporary Assignment to March 31, 2027
Posting Status: Open
Location: (On site) 26 Prince Andrew Place, Toronto, ON M3C 2H4
Salary Band: $73,531 to $102,803 per year
Hours of Work: 36.25 per week
Posting Date: March 13, 2026
Closing Date: March 23, 2026
Who we are
Elections Ontario (EO) is an independent, non-partisan office of the Ontario legislature that delivers provincial elections, by-elections, and referenda in Ontario. EO is committed to making voting easy and accessible, while maintaining the integrity, security, and transparency of the electoral process.
Join our team
The Design & Strategic Innovation division is seeking a strategic, forward-thinking and data-driven professional to support EO’s research and innovation agenda.
As a Senior Research & Data Analyst with a focus on behavioral insights, you will play a critical role in strengthening EO’s understanding of elector motivations, barriers, trust drivers, and participation behaviors. You will translate research findings into behaviorally-informed strategies that support accessible, equitable, and evidence-based electoral service design.
What to expect in this role
Reporting to the Manager of Research & Insights, you will:
Co-lead the Development of Elector Personas
Conduct desktop research, literature reviews, and jurisdictional scans to identify behavioral frameworks and leading practices that are relevant to civic participation.
Collect, integrate, and analyze primary research and transactional data to identify patterns in elector motivations, trust, accessibility barriers, and participation behaviors.
Design research approaches, including surveys and targeted qualitative methods, to generate the evidence required to inform persona development.
Develop evidence-based elector personas that are grounded in behavioural, attitudinal, and experiential data, applying a range of qualitative and quantitative synthesis techniques, from rigorous thematic analysis to rapid insight synthesis, to produce clear, actionable outcomes.
Develop and implement strategic communications materials and approaches to effectively introduce, position, and integrate elector personas across the organization.
Strengthen EO’s Research Program
Review and refine EO’s research methodologies, survey instruments, analytical approaches, and reporting practices to ensure they are elector-centered, behaviourally informed, and grounded in accessible, inclusive, and equity-informed design principles.
Develop frameworks to guide how research questions are designed, how responses are interpreted, and how insights are reported.
Contribute to performance measurement frameworks that assess elector experience, participation outcomes, and service quality.
Support insight translation by ensuring research findings are synthesized into clear, actionable recommendations for decision makers.
Provide Expert Advice within Design & Strategic Innovation
Serve as a subject matter expert on inclusive, elector-focused research practices.
Advise colleagues on ethical, accessible, and practical research design.
Contribute to building research literacy across the division by sharing behavioral and methodological best practices.
Monitor emerging trends in behavioral science, civic engagement, and public sector research to inform EO’s future planning.
What you need to qualify
Demonstrated expertise in behavioral science, applied psychology, behavioral economics, public policy research, or a related discipline, with experience applying design thinking or human-centered design principles to research, insight development, or service improvement initiatives.
Experience designing and conducting both qualitative and quantitative research.
Strong experience conducting desktop research, literature reviews, and evidence synthesis.
Proven ability to translate complex research findings into clear, compelling insights and recommendations.
Experience with developing segmentation models, personas, or behavioral frameworks.
Proficiency in data science tools (e.g. Python, R), statistical software, and data visualization tools (e.g. Tableau, Power BI, R-Shiny).
Strong experience working with large datasets and advanced statistical models.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Ability to work effectively across teams and with external partners to integrate data-driven insights into organizational initiatives.
Bachelor’s degree in psychology, behavioral science, public policy, social science, or related field.
Minimum five (5) years of progressively-responsible experience in applied research or behavioral insights.
Must be legally entitled to work in Canada.
Preferred qualifications
Experience working in the public sector, civic engagement, accessibility, or equity-informed research.
Knowledge of the Ontario Election Act and Election Finances Act.
Ability to converse in English and French.
The successful candidate must be able