How to Arrange Meetings to Lobby a Representative

Representatives need to stay alert to the issues that are important to the people that elected them. While some representatives spend most of their time in Washington DC, most of them have their homes in their districts. You should know how to arrange meetings to lobby your representative.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Arrange Meetings to Lobby a Representative

1. Call the local or Washington office of your representative. The numbers should be listed in the phone book or easily found using an Internet search engine.

2. Explain to the staffer that answers the phone exactly what you're looking for. You should make it clear that you're calling from the home district and would like to speak to the representative about an issue. Stress that you'd prefer to meet in person.

3. Let the staffer know how many people, if any, are lobbying with you. As you arrange a date and time to meet, make it clear that you'd like to have it as soon as possible because the issue will be voted on soon. Try to have an idea of how much time you need for the meeting; 15 to 20 minutes might be all you can get.

4. Plan your presentation to stress the most important information. You'll be working with limited time. Try to create enough interest for the representative so that he'll do more research about it on his own.

5. Bring extra copies of all the information related to your issue. You want to explain why it is important and how it affects the public in the district. Your papers can rely all the specific information to the representative and her staff.

6. Send a thank you card to the office after your meeting. Mention that you're glad to be represented by such an understanding person and you'll continue to support him with your vote.

Tips & Warnings

• You can try to arrange meetings to lobby your representative with email or regular mail too. The phone may be best because then you can talk to someone directly and work out a schedule.
• You can give a gift to your representative, but if you are a registered lobbyist be aware of the restrictions on gift giving.
• You should settle for a phone conversation if you can't get a personal meeting. You want any chance to speak directly with the representative.
• Be prepared for a last minute reschedule of your meeting. Remember that the political world is changing constantly and a late breaking development may require your representative to be somewhere else during the time you were supposed to meet.