How to write to your congressman and senators
Every member of Congress takes messages through a web form, phone, fax or postal mail. Members don’t publish personal email addresses. Resistbot finds your officials from your address and delivers one letter to all of them, by text to 50409 or on the web.
or text write to 50409
ResistbotWeb chat- You:WRITE
- Resistbot:🎯 Please reply with one target for your letter! Popular ones include: - CONGRESS (House & Senate) - STATE (Governor & Legislature) - SENATE - HOUSE - WINNERS (ask your incoming officeholders)
- You:Congress
- Resistbot:📄 Reply with the full body of your letter to Sen. Rivera, Sen. Chen and Rep. Okafor or DISCARD to cancel. 💁 I recommend you stick to one issue, and keep it under 350 words. You don’t need an opening, closing, your name, address, zip code, or officials’ names. I handle all of that!
- You:My family heats our home with oil, and this winter our bill is set to jump by nearly a third. Please fund the extra $3 billion for home heating assistance so no family has to choose between heat and groceries.
- Resistbot:To help officials and staff, please reply with a concise subject that tells officials what you want them to do, or SKIP to use the first line of your letter.
- You:Fund home heating assistance this winter
- Resistbot:Dear Senator Rivera,My family heats our home with oil, and this winter our bill is set to jump by nearly a third. Please fund the extra $3 billion for home heating assistance so no family has to choose between heat and groceries.Alex MorganIf this looks good, reply SEND. If not, reply ADD to add to your letter or CLEAR to start over.
- You:Send
- Resistbot:📃 Would you like your letter to be: Private (officials only) Open (published online) Petition (others can cosign it)
- You:Private
- Resistbot:How would you like to send your letters? (You have 85 coins.) 📬 First-Class Mail (360 coins) 📠 Fax (30 coins) 📧 Email (free) (Ignore this and I’ll email)
- You:Email
- Resistbot:📧 Your letters to Sen. Rivera, Sen. Chen and Rep. Okafor were sent via email!
1. Find your representative and senators
You have one U.S. representative, chosen by your congressional district, and two U.S. senators, chosen by your state. Your address decides all three. Browse the officials Resistbot delivers to, or start a letter and Resistbot looks them up from your address.
2. Ways to reach them
- Web contact form. Each office has a form on its official website. It asks for your street address and only accepts messages from constituents in its state or district.
- Phone. Call the Washington office or a district office. Staff note your name, address and position on the issue.
- Fax. Most offices still accept faxes, which arrive the same day.
- Postal mail. Mail to Capitol Hill is screened before it reaches an office, which can delay it by weeks. Letters to a district office avoid most of that delay.
- Resistbot. Write once, and Resistbot delivers your letter to each office by email, fax or postal mail. You never look up a form or an address.
3. What to write
- Say you’re a constituent. Open with your name and where you live. Offices prioritize the people they represent.
- Name one issue. If there’s a bill, give its number, like H.R. 1234 or S. 567, and say whether you support or oppose it.
- Keep it short. Three or four short paragraphs is plenty. Staff log each letter by issue and position.
- Make it personal. Explain how the issue affects you, your family or your work. Your own words carry more weight than a form letter.
Not sure where to start? Send Resistbot a bill number or a news article and it drafts a letter you can edit before it’s sent.
4. Write to your state legislators, governor and mayor at once
Many decisions that affect you happen in your statehouse and city hall. When Resistbot asks where to send your letter, reply all to reach the President, Congress, your governor and state legislators, or state for just your governor and legislators, or mayor for your city or county mayor. The keyword guide lists every target.
5. Make your voice heard beyond letters
- Letters to the editor. Resistbot can send your letter to your local newspaper too. See the letters we’ve had published.
- Public letters. Publish your letter so others can read it and send their own.
- Town halls and office visits. Text visit to find the Capitol and local offices for your members of Congress.
Frequently asked questions
Do members of Congress read letters from constituents?
Staff read and log constituent mail, tally it by issue and position, and report those counts to the member. A short letter in your own words, from a verified constituent address, is what gets counted.
Does a letter count more than a phone call?
Offices count both. A call registers your position on the day you make it. A written letter carries your reasons and your story, which staff can quote when they brief the member, and it reaches every office on the same day.
Can I email my senator directly?
Not to a personal inbox. Senators and representatives do not publish their email addresses. Each office takes written messages through official channels, usually a web contact form that checks your address against its state or district. Resistbot finds your officials from your address and delivers your letter to each office through those channels for you.
Write to Congress now
or text resist to 50409
As of , Resistbot delivers to your senators, representative, governor, state legislators and mayor by email, fax or postal mail, from a text to 50409, Apple Messages or the web.
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