Write a Letter to Congress

While many people rely on emails more and more these days, often writing a letter to your senator or representative is an even more effective way to make your voice heard by Congress. A letter takes time and money to write, stamp, and post, so it sends a strong signal on the importance of an issue to the constituent.

Once you write a letter, get your friends and family to do so as well. ONE will alert you at the moments when your letters are most needed.

Follow these easy steps and tips to write an effective letter to Congress.

Find your member of Congress

Visit the links below and type in your 5-digit zip code. If you live in a heavily-populated area, you may need to include the additional 4 digits in order to pinpoint your member of Congress.

www.house.gov
www.senate.gov

Tips for writing a successful letter to your member of Congress

Writing a letter to your member of Congress is an easy and important way to let our elected leaders know you are committed to the fight against extreme poverty and preventable disease.

Here are some tips to make your letter more effective:

- Know your facts. Review ONE's current actions and figure out exactly what you want to ask of your member of Congress before you begin writing your letter. You can also check in with your local field organizer to learn about any specific legislation we would like you could help us by supporting.

- Stay on message. You should only focus on one topic at a time. Keep in mind that you are writing to advocate for the world's poorest people, and try not to bring up other issues in your letter. Be sure to include the actual bill number or title of the legislation you are supporting.

- Don't be partisan. Regardless of your political views, remember that ONE is non-partisan and we need the support of Republicans, Democrats and Independents if we are going to achieve our goals. Even if your congressional representative does not share your political affiliation, he or she still represents you in Congress and as a constituent, you have the ability to help shape your member's agenda and votes.

- Request a response. Always end the letter by asking for a response from your representative or senator.

- Recruit others. While writing your own letter is a great way to let your member of Congress know  you care about fighting extreme poverty, getting everyone you know to do the same is even more powerful. Ask your friends or family to write letters, or start a letter-writing campaign in your community. Consider making the writing process a social event so you can do it together.

- Mail, fax or hand-deliver your letter. Be aware that letters mailed to Capitol Hill undergo a thorough security check that can slow down arrival by 2-3 weeks. So while a letter is appropriate when asking for something that does not need action immediately, you should consider faxing your letter to their Washington, DC office for issues needing action within a week. If you do not have access to a fax machine, you can hand-deliver your letter to your member of Congress' local district or Washington, D.C. office, or contact your local field organizer for help.

- Let us know. We want to hear about all the letters you are writing to your member of Congress. This helps us measure the interest of our members on an issue, the success of an action, and how long we should run our campaigns. Most importantly, it lets us measure how many times a member of Congress has been ‘hit', which we can use as leverage for other forms of engagement.