Business Development Representative (BDR)

State Affairs is the nation’s leading news and policy intelligence platform focused on state governments. We combine nonpartisan coverage of Statehouses across the country alongside state government data and AI-native tools into a singular platform.

We inform and empower decision makers, policy professionals and citizens through our award-winning journalism and data – delivering profound insights to help our customers decode and act on state politics and policy. We’re building a category-defining business that will reshape America as we strengthen visibility into what’s happening and why at the state level.

We are hiring a Business Development Representative (BDR) to join our team located in Washington, DC.

As the Business Development Representative (BDR) you will:

Drive top-of-funnel growth by reaching out to prospects through cold calls, emails, and LinkedIn to generate interest and book qualified meetings.

Own the outbound motion—creating smart, personalized outreach that helps potential customers understand how State Affairs can solve real-world policy challenges.

Ask thoughtful, strategic questions to qualify leads and surface meaningful sales conversations.

Keep our CRM (HubSpot) clean and organized by logging all activities, tracking outreach, and managing contact records.

Collaborate closely with Account Executives and marketing to improve messaging, campaigns, and conversion rates.

Consistently meet and exceed monthly goals for meetings and pipeline creation.

Essential Qualifications for this position include:

1 to 2 years of professional work experience in a sales or a related customer-facing role

Ability to effectively communicate in order to start engaging conversations with potential customers

Ability to utilize a CRM such as HubSpot

Preferred Qualifications for this position include:

Knowledge of sales engagement tools such as Lemlist or Apollo.io

Prior professional work experience as a Business Development Representative (BDR) or Sales Development Representative (SDR)

Prior professional work experience in a start-up organization

This is an in office work opportunity and our teams operate from the Washington, DC office located at L and 15th St. NW five days per week. State Affairs offers a competitive salary and a comprehensive benefits package to employees.

The compensation range for this role as it is posted is $70,000 to $80,000 (on-target-earnings) for candidates working from the State Affairs office in Washington, DC. The final job level and annual salary will be determined based on the education, qualification, knowledge, skills, ability, and experience of the final candidate(s), and calibrated against relevant market data and internal team equity. Benefits listed in this posting may vary depending on the nature of your employment with State Affairs.

Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States without the need for current or future company sponsorship.

State Affairs is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions on the basis of merit and business needs. State Affairs does not discriminate against applicants on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, disability, or any other protected characteristic in accordance with federal, state, and local law.

State Affairs is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities as they go through our job application and interview process. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us at [email protected]

By submitting your application, you affirm the content contained therein is true and accurate in all respects. Please note that prior to employment, State Affairs will obtain background checks for employment purposes that may include, where permitted by law, the following: identify verification, prior employment verification, personal and professional references, educational verification, and criminal history. For certain roles, further background checks covering additional information and activities may be initiated.

"By clicking "Submit Application" you are consenting to the use and retention of the information you have provided as set forth in the State Affairs Privacy Policy .