A 5-Minute Democracy Strengthener

Today is all about state legislatures. And if you are thinking, "Well, that's juicy!" you would be correct.

But first, let's set the scene.

American democracy is like a three-layer cake – let's say it's a coconut chiffon.

The first layer of that cake is the federal layer, which has all that showy whipped frosting and gets all the media attention. Far less noticeable, but just as important to a good cake and a good democracy, are the other two layers: the state layer and the local layer.

Let's focus on that state layer. And let's zoom in to the part of the state layer that we, the voters, have the most say on: the legislature.

Middle school civics throwback! American government at the state and federal level is divided into three branches:

The Executive Branch: at the federal level, that's the President and his/her cabinet (i.e. Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, etc). At the state level, that's the governor and her/his cabinet.

Judicial branch: that's the courts.

Legislative branch: at the federal level, that's Congress and at the state level, that's state legislatures.

State legislatures crank out legislation at a far faster clip than Congress. (Right now, Congress' batting average is 1% of bills introduced get passed, which makes my Little League batting average look like Aaron Judge.) And these aren't esoteric bills with no bearing on our daily lives; state legislators are calling the shots on firearms, abortion, who gets taxed and how much.

But here's the rub: fewer than 20% of Americans can name their state legislators.

A pal who's a State Senator in another state and represents about 3.1% of the state population said, If I get five calls on an issue, that's a big deal. 

Another friend who works for a State Senator representing just under 3% of the state population said 10 phone calls could sway the boss's vote. Not necessarily on marquee issues, but plenty of issues that matter aren't grabbing headlines - crisis hotline funding, adoption policy, bike lanes, food waste, and more.

This all means these state legislators have massive influence on our lives, most of us have zero idea who they are. And that one call or email could make a real difference.

So here's our 5-minute democracy strengthener:

1. Find out who your state legislators are by clicking here. You likely have two: a state representative and a state senator. There are usually fewer senators than representatives, and senators represent more people. So fewer of them and more constituents = more power.
   
2. Add their phone number/email to your contacts. Many of them have their mobile number and email address listed on their legislative webpage.
   
3. You could even set up an alert for their names; you may end up with a whopping 3-4 email alerts per legislative session! For a very few of us, it may mean more emails, in which case we could probably follow our state reps in the news instead. 
   
4. Find out a bit about them: search for their name and issues you care about.
   When one of those issues comes up, give them a jingle to share your opinion - you might be one of the first constituent calls they get. You might even be the call that sways their vote.