Lobby Day Event Guide

Step 1:

Plan ahead.

• Contact your Regional Coordinator to help research details of the legislation you’re considering lobbying on behalf of or against.
• 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.)
• Find your representatives’ contact information online and email them 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 would be most productive.

Step 2:

Organize and prepare volunteers.

• Get as many people as possible to sign up for your lobby day. 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. 
• Schedule a Public Policy Training with your Regional Coordinator to prepare you and your volunteers.
• Define roles when lobbying. 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:

Lobby for life!

1. Be on time if you have appointments on your Lobby Day, be on time. If representatives did not respond, make sure to 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 legislative staffer, but they usually take notes and present them later to the representative.
2. Be honest. Tell them how you feel about life-saving legislation, pro-life values, and why the bill you’re lobbying for/against 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-abortion, 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:

Tie up loose ends after the event.

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