Conversation Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye I worked for Congress for 6 years, and here's what I learned about how they listen to constituents.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye First, tweeting or writing on Facebook is largely ineffective. I never looked at those comments except to remove the harassing ones.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye Second, writing a letter to the district office (state) is better than sending an email or writing a letter to DC.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye But, the most effective thing is to actually call them on the phone. At their district (state) office. They have to talk to you there.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye We repped half a million people, it was impossible to read and respond personally to all letters. Impossible.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye This was something in particular that I cared about as a staffer and worked very hard on, but the sheer volume of emails is overwhelming

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye So, we batched them with computer algorithms and sent out form letters based on topic and position. Regardless of method received.

in reply to @editoremilye Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye But, phone calls! That was a thing that shook up our office from time. One time, a radio host gave out our district office phone # on air.10:09 AM ·

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye He was against our immigration policy and told our constituents to call. And they did. All. Day. Long. All I did all day was answer phones.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye It was exhausting and you can bet my bosses heard about it. We had discussions because of that call to action.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye If we started getting a pattern of calls, I called up our DC office and asked if they were getting the same calls and we talked.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye Also, recognize that your letters and your emails get seen by staffers, just like your phone calls get answered. That's the way of it.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye If you want to talk to your rep, show up at town hall meetings. Get a huge group that they can't ignore. Pack that place and ask questions.

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye We held town halls consistently that fewer than 50 people showed up for. And it was always the same people. So, shake it up.

Nov 12 Megan Broderick‏ @megbrod12 @editoremilye I'm literally making an excel right now of all my reps contact info, this is great to have! Esp the DC vs district office

Nov 12 Emily Ellsworth‏ @editoremilye As always, please be kind but firm with those staffers. They will listen and talk to you. I always, always did.

Sorry about the lack of formatting, I'm on my smartphone.

Edit: added line breaks.