Jake Matilsky is a Democratic activist and the director of the Center for Secure and Modern Elections, a left-of-center voter advocacy group created by the New Venture Fund. Matilsky worked for Organizing for Action, J Street, and ran Montana Voices and Montana Votes, a pair of umbrella organizations for left-of-center activist groups.

Education

Jake Matilsky was raised in New Jersey and was home-schooled. He attended Finger Lakes Community College in New York before transferring to Columbia University’s School of General Studies in 2007. ¹ In 2009, Matilsky graduated from Columbia University with a degree in political science. He was a member of Students for a Democratic Society, the Columbia Coalition for Students Against the War, and Students for Justice in the Middle East, and actively protested against military interventions in the Middle East. ² Matilsky was also a member and get-out-the-vote organizer for the school’s College Democrats club. ³

Matilsky has traveled in Chile and the Middle East,⁴ and earned a language certificate for Arabic from the University of Wisconsin. ⁵

Career

Prior to attending Columbia, Jake Matilsky worked as a ranch hand in Kansas and then as a firefighter for the National Park Service in Kings Canyon National Park. ⁶

In 2010, Matilsky worked for three months as a field organizer for Organize for America, now known as Organizing for Action, a left-of-center activist group founded to support President Barack Obama’s policy initiatives. Starting in late 2010, Matilsky served as a volunteering coordinator fellow for Michael Hancock’s (D-Denver) successful mayoral campaign. ⁷

In 2011, Matilsky became northeast regional organizer for J Street, a left-of-center lobbying group focused on Israeli-American relations. Over the course of a year, Matilsky trained staff at thirteen chapters and established for more chapters. For three months, Matilsky also worked as voter outreach manager for Minka vanBeuzekom’s (D-Cambridge) successful campaign for city council of Cambridge, Massachusetts. ⁸

From 2012 to 2015, Matilsky served as executive director of Montana Votes and Montana Voices, two organizations that led a coalition of 28 left-of-center advocacy groups. In 2014, he also worked as campaign manager for Montanans for Free and Fair Elections, $1.9 million campaign that defeated a ballot initiative to eliminate the option for Montanans to register to vote up until 8 P.M. on Election Day. ⁹

Starting in 2015, Matilsky acquired a leadership role at State Strategies LLC, a lobbying firm based in Portland, Oregon. Matilsky’s LinkedIn lists him as CEO of the company from 2015 through 2020,¹⁰ but the firm’s registration forms with the Oregon Secretary of State list Matilsky as an “inactive” agent and manager. ¹¹ State Strategies’s website does not mention Matilsky. ¹²

At some point from 2016 onward, Matilsky became director of the Center for Secure and Modern Elections, a left-wing voter advocacy group created by the New Venture Fund. ¹³ Matalisky lists his employer as the New Venture Fund with the Federal Election Commission. ¹⁴

Matilsky is also an advisor for Vote at Home, an left-progressive group pushing for vote-by-mail. ¹⁵

Political Contributions

In 2018, Jake Matilsky gave $250 to the reelection campaign of Senator Jon Tester (D-MT). In 2020, Matilsky gave $500 to the presidential campaign of Joe Biden (D). ¹⁶

1. “Columbia Daily Spectator, Volume CXXXIII, Number 69, 20 May 2009.” Columbia Daily Spectator. May 20, 2009. Accessed September 25, 2020. http://spectatorarchive.library.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/columbia?a=d&d=cs20090520-01.2.11&.
2. Levi, Scott. “Senior Profile: Jacob Matilsky, GS.” Daily Columbia Spectator. March 27, 2013. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.columbiaspectator.com/2009/05/19/senior-profile-jacob-matilsky-gs/.
3. “Jacob Matilsky Resume.” Wikileaks. Accessed September 25, 2020.
4. Levi, Scott. “Senior Profile: Jacob Matilsky, GS.” Daily Columbia Spectator. March 27, 2013. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.columbiaspectator.com/2009/05/19/senior-profile-jacob-matilsky-gs/.
5. “Jake Matilsky.” LinkedIn. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-matilsky-04613024/.
6. “Jake Matilsky.” LinkedIn. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-matilsky-04613024/.
7. “Jake Matilsky.” LinkedIn. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-matilsky-04613024/.
8. “Jake Matilsky.” LinkedIn. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-matilsky-04613024/.
9. “Jacob Matilsky.” Wikileaks. Accessed September 25, 2020.
10. “Jake Matilsky.” LinkedIn. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-matilsky-04613024/.
11. “State Strategies LLC.” OpenCorporates. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_or/112675699.
12. “Our Story.” State Strategies. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://statesstrategies.com/our-story/.
13. “Circle of Advisors.” Vote at Home. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://voteathome.org/about-us/.
14. “Donor Lookup: Jacob Matilsky.” Open Secrets. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Jacob+Matilsky.
15. “Circle of Advisors.” Vote at Home. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://voteathome.org/about-us/.
16. “Circle of Advisors.” Vote at Home. Accessed September 25, 2020. https://voteathome.org/about-us/.