DPC Board Member Andrew Conkling with Alabama Representative Gary Palmer
Part of the responsibility of advocating for your health is getting informed about and building relationships with your local lawmakers.
The 2018 midterm elections brought in more than 100 new Representatives on January 3, 2019, many of whom have never held elected office. A lot of these new Members are women and minorities. Now is great time to start getting to know your local lawmakers to educate them on kidney disease and to share your story.
How to Look Up Your Members of Congress
Do you know your members of Congress by name? Would you recognize them if you saw them speaking on TV or in a town meeting? If not, there are simple ways to find this information online.
House of Representatives
- To look up your Representative, visit the United States House of Representatives website.
- Enter the postal code of your residence, and press the “Find Your Rep By Zip” button to search.
Depending on where you live, you may be prompted to enter your street address to narrow the search.
After completing the search, you will learn the political affiliation of your District Representative.
In addition, click on the name of the Representative to learn more about their background.
Senate
- To look up your two senators, visit the United States Senate website.
- Select your state of residence in the dropdown.
In addition to the name of the senators, you will notice some additional information.
Political Affiliation
Next to each senator’s name, you will see the abbreviation for their political affiliation:
- R = Republican
- D = Democrat
- I = Independent
Class
In addition to political affiliation, you will notice a class distinction. This informs you of when the senator is up for election or reelection:
- Class I – terms for senators expire in 2025
- Class II – terms for senators expire in 2021
- Class III – terms for senators expire in 2023
Senators are elected to six-year terms, and approximately one-third face election or reelection every two years.
Background and Experience
Click on the name of the senator to learn more about their background.
Learning More About Your Members of Congress
Now that you know how to look up your members of Congress, learn as much as you can about their background, experience and the issues they care most about.
See if there is anything you have in common with them. Having a mutual interest may make it easier to approach them to start a conversation about an important issue or build a relationship with them.
Keep an eye out for them on TV or in the newspaper, and start getting informed about their political leadership.
Looking Ahead
DPC is vigilantly monitoring legislative priorities, paying close attention to the movement on health care bills relevant to dialysis patients. Once these bills have been reintroduced, we will need your help educating your lawmakers about these important issues affecting patients’ quality of care.
In the meantime, please get to know your Members of Congress. We will be in touch soon with next actions.
