Advocacy 101

What is advocacy?

Advocacy is the proactive support of a cause, with the intention of influencing decision makers to support your cause. Advocacy can be on a local, state, or national level.

What is a constituent?

In advocacy terms, a constituent is someone who lives in a decision maker’s legislative district. In other words, they are the individuals that will appear on your voting ballot. It is very important to find out who your legislators are, and always let them know that you are their constituent when you are advocating on behalf of an issue.

Advocacy Tips

Being an advocate is a lot easier than it sounds. First, it is important to be a registered voter. Being a registered voter, gives you the power to elect someone into office. When a legislator knows that you have the power to choose them, or their opponent, they are much more likely to listen to what you have to say. Second, know your issue. Do some research on the topic or issue that you are supporting. Being knowledgeable on the issue will give you more credibility. If a legislator asks you a question and you do not know the answer, it is best to say “I am not sure at the moment, but I can find out and get back to you”. Never make up an answer, because they will not trust you if they find out that you lied, and it can permanently damage the relationship you are trying to build. Then make sure to find out the answer, and get back to them. ALWAYS FOLLOW UP.

Who are your State legislators?

Click here to find out. http://www.azleg.gov/alisStaticPages/HowToContactMember.asp.

Your Congressional Senators are:

John McCain (R) 241 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington DC 20510 (202) 224-2235 http://mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm
Jon Kyl (R) 730 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington DC 20510 (202) 224-4521 http://kyl.senate.gov/contact.cfm

Who are your Congressional Representatives (members of the House of Representatives)?

Click here to find out http://www.house.gov/ (Hint: on the top right hand of the home page enter your zip code to find out).

What is the best way to contact your legislator?

Email/Letter- Writing an email or letter to your legislator is really simple. Start out by mentioning that you are a constituent in their district, the issue you are supporting or opposing and why, the bill number (if there is one), and what you would like them to do (either support or oppose a bill).
Phone- If you feel comfortable, you can call them. Most likely a staff person will answer. You can let the staff person know that you are a constituent, and you would like your legislator to support or oppose the issue, and tell them the bill number. The staff person is most likely keeping track of the number of people calling to support or oppose a bill, so it is still a great way of communicating your needs, without having to speak to the decision maker directly.
In person- If you feel very comfortable meeting them in person, it is a great way to build a relationship with your legislator. Make sure to mention that you are a constituent when making the appointment. Try to be as prepared as possible. Research the issue, know the bill number, bring talking points to remember what you would like to say, and ask them to take action (to either vote yes or no on the bill). Send your legislator a thank you note if you met them in person, or if they voted the way that you wanted them to on your issue. Building relationships- Building a relationship with your legislator is incredibly important. It allows your representative to know exactly what you want as their constituent, and how you want them to proceed on issues that matter to you. If you are respectful, honest, and personable with your representative, they are more likely to be open to what you have to say. Also, if you provide them with accurate information, are honest about what you don’t know, and follow up with them, they may grow to see you as a valuable resource. And, they may even contact you for an “expert” opinion after they believe that you are a trustworthy resource.
 
** Remember to always be honest, courteous and respectful with your legislator. You never want to burn bridges. Someone may oppose you on one issue, and become an ally on another issue.
 
 To learn a short version of how a bill becomes a law, click here. Hint: the size of the page will be set to 38.5%. Make sure to make the page larger so that it is easier to read. When you print it, it will print larger as well.
 
For a further in-depth look at how a bill becomes law, click here.