Let’s just call it like it is: having two democratic senators doesn’t guarantee anything. You may also be concerned about how quickly and directly party leadership will react to Trump’s daily wrecking ball. We are too. And while we’re hopeful for them to act faster and louder soon, hope isn’t going to get us to the 2026 midterms. The only thing we can control right now is our own resistance.
1.Emailing and online petitions are a waste of time. Don’t waste your time.
2. Face-to-face contact is the BEST way to make waves. If you can show up in-person at a town hall or at their local office, do it. Have questions prepared – lots of them. And urge them to answer.
Mark Kelly’s PHX Office: 2201 E. Camelback Rd Suite 115
Ruben Gallego’s PHX Office: 3333 East Camelback Road Suite 200
Eli Crane’s Prescott Office is available *by appointment only* : 122 N. Cortez St. Suite 211
3. In-person events don’t happen every day. So, the absolute most important thing that people in Yavapai County should be doing is making 6 calls per day:
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- Mark Kelly’s D.C. Office: (202) 224-2235
- Mark Kelly’s PHX Office: (602) 671-7901
- Ruben Gallego’s D.C. Office: 202-224-4521
- Ruben Gallego’s PHX Office: 480-697-3600
- Eli Crane’s D.C. Office: (202) 225-3361
- Eli Crane’s Prescott Office: (928) 286-5338
More about these calls…
4. Republican callers generally outnumber Democratic callers 4-1. When it’s a particular issue that single-issue-voters pay attention to (like gun control, or planned parenthood funding, etc.), it’s often closer to 11-1, and that’s recently pushed congressmen on the fence to vote with the Republicans. Every single day, the senior staff and the Senator get a report of the 3 most-called-about topics for that day at each of their offices and exactly how many people said what about each of those topics. They’re also sorted by zip code and area code (give them your zip code!).
5. Give them your zip code. They won’t always ask for it, but make sure you give it to them, so they can mark it down. Extra points if you live in a zip code that traditionally votes for them, since they’ll want to make sure they get/keep your vote.
6. When calling the DC office, ask for the staff member in charge of whatever you’re calling about (“Hi, I’d like to speak with the staffer in charge of Healthcare, please”). Local offices won’t always have specific ones, but ask for one anyway. If you get transferred to that person, awesome. If you don’t, that’s ok – ask for their name, and then just keep talking to whoever answered the phone. Don’t leave a message (unless the office doesn’t pick up at all).
7. Pick 1-2 specific things per day to focus on. Don’t go down a whole list – they’re figuring out what 1-2 topics to mark you down for on their lists. So, focus on 1-2 per day. Ideally something that will be voted on/taken up in the next few days, but it doesn’t really matter – even if there’s not a vote coming up in the next week, call anyway. It’s important that they just keep getting calls.
8. If you can make it personal, make it personal. “I voted for you in the last election and I’m worried/happy/whatever” or “I’m a teacher, and I am appalled by XYZ,” or “as a single mother” or “as a white, middle class woman,” or whatever.
9. Be clear on what you want – “I’m disappointed that the Senator…” or “I want to thank the Senator for their vote on…” or “I want the Senator to know that voting in _____ way is the wrong decision for our state because…” Don’t leave any ambiguity.
They may get to know your voice/get sick of you – it doesn’t matter. If you hate being on the phone & feel awkward (which is a lot of people) don’t worry about it – after a few days of calling, it starts to feel a lot more natural.
10. Try saving the numbers in your phone all under P – for Politician (Politician Mark Kelly DC, Politician Mark Kelly PHX, etc…) to make it really easy to click down the list each day.
10+. You can also download the 5 Calls app to find the most urgent topics of the day and corresponding scripts.
