How to contact your senator or congressman

Every American has three people in Congress: two U.S. Senators for your state and one U.S. Representative for your district. Here's how to reach them for free, what makes them pay attention, and a sample letter you can copy.

The short version: call (202) 224-3121 and ask for your senator or representative, or use the contact form on their website. Find your senators at senate.gov and your representative at house.gov.

Step 1: Find out who represents you

Senators: every state has two. Pick your state on senate.gov's contact page and you'll see both, with phone numbers and website links.

Your representative: this one depends on where you live, not just your state. Use Find Your Representative on house.gov. Some ZIP codes cross district lines, so it may ask for your street address too.

One thing people mix up: your state representative and state senator work at your state capitol, not in Washington. This page is about the U.S. Congress. For state lawmakers, check your state legislature's website.

Step 2: Pick how you'll reach them

Call. The Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 will connect you to any office. A staffer or voicemail takes your name, ZIP code and position. Quick, and counted the same day.
Use their website contact form. Every member has one. It asks for your address to confirm you're a constituent, then lets you write a message. This is the most common way to write to Congress now.
Mail a letter. It still works, but mail to Congress gets screened before it's delivered, so it can take weeks to arrive. If timing matters, use the phone or the website instead.
Visit a local office. Members have offices in their home state. Meeting staff in person is slower to set up but hard to ignore.

Step 3: Make your message count

Say you're a constituent and include your full address. Offices mostly ignore messages from outside their state or district.
Stick to one issue. Staff sort messages by topic. One clear topic gets logged correctly.
Name the bill. If there's a bill, use its name and number, like "S. 5183, the Anti-Corruption Bureau Creation Act."
Ask for something specific. "Please cosponsor" or "please vote yes" is easier to count than a general opinion.
Add one line about you. Why it matters to you, in your own words. Personal messages stand out from copy-and-paste campaigns.
Keep it short. A few short paragraphs is plenty.

A sample letter you can copy

Use this as a starting point and change it however you like. Swap in your member's name and add your own sentence where it says to.

Dear Senator [Last name], As your constituent in [City, State], I'm writing to ask you to support S. 5183, the Anti-Corruption Bureau Creation Act. The bill would combine the Federal Election Commission, the Office of Government Ethics and the Office of Special Counsel into one independent Anti-Corruption Bureau, and it would let citizens recover money that senior officials gain by misusing their office, whichever party is in power. [One or two sentences about why this matters to you.] Please cosponsor S. 5183, and if it doesn't pass before this Congress ends on January 3, 2027, please support it when it's reintroduced. Thank you. I'd appreciate knowing where you stand. [Your name] [Street address] [City, State ZIP] [Email]

Writing to your representative? Change the greeting to "Dear Representative [Last name]" and ask them to support companion legislation in the House. More about the bill: the Anti-Corruption Bureau Creation Act, explained.

Rather not fill out three forms? $2.99, we can send it. Send my letters

Common questions

How do I contact my senator?

Call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask for your senator's office, or use the contact form on your senator's website. You can find both of your senators at senate.gov by choosing your state.

How do I find out who my congressman is?

Go to house.gov and use Find Your Representative. Enter your ZIP code, and if your ZIP is split between districts, your street address. Each state has two senators, but your House member depends on your district.

Is it better to call or write to Congress?

Both get counted. A call is fastest and is usually tallied the same day. A written message through the official contact form gives you room to explain your view and creates a record. Mailed paper letters are screened before delivery and can take weeks.

Does writing to my representative actually do anything?

Offices log messages from constituents by issue and position, and staff share those counts with the member. A single message rarely changes a vote, but steady messages on a bill show the office how voters back home feel about it.

Can I contact a senator from another state?

You can, but offices give priority to their own constituents and many contact forms only accept addresses in their state or district. Your own two senators and your own representative are the ones who will count your message.

Official links

Last updated November 9, 2026. Anti-Corruption USA is an independent citizen project, not affiliated with Congress, any government agency or any political party.