Lobby Day

Step 1

Plan ahead.

1. Contact your Regional Coordinator to help research details of the legislation you’re considering.
2. Contact your local Right to Life chapter or State affiliate to discuss their position and what steps they’ve taken. (Your Regional Coordinator will most-likely already have a working relationship with them and can help with this as well.)
3. Find your representative’s contact online and email to try to set up an official meeting. If they do not respond, or if they decline the meeting, you are still able to show up and knock on their door to talk with a staffer. Ideally, a scheduled meeting will be more productive.

Step 2

Prepare volunteers.

1. Schedule an SFLA Public Policy Training with your Regional Coordinator to prepare your volunteers.
2. Lobby days only need a few people to be successful, but a large group can get more attention and have a great visual impact showing how many people truly care enough to go to a representative’s office in person.
3. Not everyone has to share, but for those who are, make sure it is clear who is speaking and what points each person is covering. It is not as effective if everyone repeats the same information.

Step 3

Day of the event.

1. If you have an appointment, be on time. If they did not respond, you can still walk up to their office and knock or walk in to ask to speak with someone. In that case, you may end up speaking with a Staffer, but they usually take notes and present later to the representative.
2. Your voice matters! Be honest and tell them how you feel about life-saving legislation, pro-life values, and why the bill you’re lobbying for is so important.
3. Be personable. Presenting facts and statistics can be important to demonstrate your careful research, but you should also connect personally with your legislator. They represent the people, so if you have a personal connection or a friend with experience related to the bill, share a concise story to show how this impacts the community.
4. Be winsome. Your voice will stand out and be remembered if you’re not “one of the many” presenting negative or condescending comments. Use words that can bridge gaps with representatives who are typically pro-choice, and make sure to THANK representatives who have voted pro-life in the past.
5. Take lots of pictures! Ask if the representative will pose for a picture with the group and a Students for Life sign.

Step 4

After the event.

1. Follow-up! Thank all the volunteers and representatives for their time.
2. Post pictures to social media. If the representatives use social media, you can tag them in a post thanking them for the meeting. Be sure to include any photos.