The One Trick That Forces Politicians to Pay Attention
And why they hope you never learn it.
Politicians don’t listen because they care. They listen because they’re cornered.
There’s one trick—used by lobbyists, organizers, and everyday citizens—that forces elected officials to take you seriously. It works because they hate it. And no, it doesn’t involve petitions or hashtags.
If you want to move the needle, you need to know this.
I’m sorry, ladies, but you have to use the phone for this one.
Look, online petitions are basically the junk mail of politics. Clicking “sign” might give you a nice little dopamine hit, but if you actually want to make an impact? You gotta pick up the phone, babe.
Calling your elected officials is the political equivalent of showing up at their door in your best “I’m Disappointed” face—trust me, it works.
Why Bother?
Because politicians care about one thing: staying in office. And guess what? They actually listen when their phone lines are blowing up with angry (or supportive!) constituents. Every single day, their staff compiles a report of the top three issues that people are yelling about. So if you’re not calling, your issue? Not on the list. Let’s fix that.
Phone calls also take more time for an elected official’s staff to respond to. This means that if you can get a lot of people to call about a certain bill or law at the same time, it will make it hard for people in that government office to do anything else but answer calls. This shows elected officials that the public really cares about a problem. That could affect how they choose to vote for the law.
How to Get Your Ducks (and Calls) in a Row
Find Your People
Go to www.house.gov and www.senate.gov to get the digits for your two Senators and your Representative.
You need their D.C. office and their local office numbers. Both matter.
Save Their Numbers
Add them to your phone under something like “Politician McSenator – DC” and “Politician McSenator – Local.”
Add them to your Favorites
Make It a Habit
Call every. single. day. Six calls total: two for each senator (D.C. + local offices) and two for your rep.
Set up a calendar reminder for every day at a set time. Tell Alexa to remind you. Program your watch to buzz your wrist—anything you need to make it happen every day.
It takes less time than doomscrolling Twitter and might actually help us.
What to Say (Without Sounding Like a Weirdo)
Here’s your political madlibs script. Feel free to sprinkle in a little extra sass.
1. Announce Yourself
“Hey there, I’m [Your Name], a voter from [Your ZIP Code].”
2. Ask for the Right Person
“Can I speak to the staffer who handles [issue: climate, healthcare, reproductive rights, democracy, etc.]?”
If they’re “not available” (lol), don’t stress. Just keep talking to whoever picked up.
3. Say Why You’re Calling
“I want [Senator/Rep’s Name] to vote against [Terrible Bill] because [why it’s a dumpster fire].”
OR “I want to thank [Senator/Rep’s Name] for voting for [Good Bill]—we need more of that energy!”
4. Make It Personal (Without Oversharing)
“As a [teacher/mom/small business owner/concerned citizen/badass], this issue affects me because…”
Make it short. Make it real.
5. Demand a Response
“Where does the Senator/Rep stand on this?”
“Will they commit to voting the way their constituents (aka ME) want?”
6. Sign Off Like a Boss
“Thanks for passing this along—I’ll be checking in again soon.”
(Because yes, you WILL be calling again. Tomorrow.)
Pro Tips for Maximum Effectiveness
Be firm, not a jerk. Staffers don’t make policy, but they DO report what they hear.
Keep it short. Under two minutes, tops.
Call with a friend. Double the volume, double the impact. Also, the friend can keep you honest about actually doing it.
Don’t stop. They might start recognizing your number. That means it’s working. Go go go!
Final Pep Talk
Making calls might feel awkward at first, but after a few tries, you’ll be a pro. And remember: If we don’t call, the only voices they hear belong to the people who don’t want the same things we do. So pick up the phone and make some noise. It’s literally the least you can do for democracy.
Join the Resistance. Share this Post. Prepare Now.
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I used an app called 5 calls, it will give you contact information for each of your representatives and a script for topics you want to talk about. It makes the process super simple.
Sounds great, but 2 out of 3 of my reps have full mailboxes they don’t clear. Impossible to reach a human. Heather Cox Richardson wrote about the deluge of calls to Congress. So in my case, they’re basically unavailable.