As election results continue to flow in, there are already
some things you can be doing to prepare for your lobby day next year (not that
you don’t already have enough on your plate):
- Develop a strategy for new members of Congress. While it is too early to determine how many new members will be joining the House, there will be at least five new members in the Senate (possibly six), as well as six (possibly seven) members shifting from a House seat in the 112th Congress to a Senate seat in the 113th. It’s important to make sure your advocates are aware of these changes and are as prepared as possible to meet with new members and their staff. Guide your advocates to the resources that will help them research their new members, such as OpenSecrets.org to look up campaign contributions. Show them how to look up a member’s record if they were once a governor or member of the State Legislature. If you have any advocates who have good relationships with the staff of a House member turned Senator, ask them to reach out to their connections to congratulate them.
- Prepare for updates on the logistical side. If you schedule meetings for your advocates in-house, keep in mind that office locations and phone numbers for members of Congress are going to get moved around. If you don’t subscribe to a service like KnowWho, you will need to manually verify phone numbers and office locations as you schedule meetings (which can be a huge pain and time-consumer).
- Begin the registration process. With your advocates freshly amped-up over the elections, you have an opportunity to strike while the iron is hot and increase participation for your next lobby day. If you aren't ready to begin actual registration, reach out to your membership with some helpful advocacy tools and include a plug about your upcoming lobby day to generate interest.
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