Last week we asked you to build momentum in support of Graham's bill (S.1980).

You SUCCEEDED.

Senators Graham, Clinton, and Boxer responded by coming together in support of a new bill, which they claim will provide a voter-verified paper ballot. It has not yet been introduced, so the text is not yet final. We must NOW let Congress know that we will settle for nothing less than the safeguards H.R.2239/S.1980 would provide.

This page provides instructions and resources to help you join in this effort. Please email us and let us know if you hear that any Senator or Representative is a new supporter or co-sponsor of H.R.2239/S.1980.

TAKE ACTION:

1. Select your state in the left nav bar to go to a page with your Senators' and Representative's names, positions on H.R.2239/S.1980, and contact information.

2. Telephone, email, and/or fax each office of those who are NOT already co-sponsors, urging them to co-sponsor H.R.2239/S.1980. You can use their personal numbers; or use this number to the Capitol switchboard and ask for the legislator's office.

(888-508-2974)

Since our known network of activists is now more than 30,000 strong (and many others join in), we can completely flood the telephone lines. So, please divide your effort according to the initial letter of your last name:

March 15, Monday – A through E [But don't call Boxer, Clinton, or Graham today. We need to be able to get through to their staff.]

March 16, Tuesday – F through J
March 17, Wednesday – K through O
March 18, Thursday – P through S
March 19, Friday – T through Z

Here are letters you can use as samples to email or fax to your Senators and Representative.

Click here for responses to questions the legislators have been asking.

Remember, we are courting them and we need the good will of every staff member.

What do to when you contact them:

* Urge your Senators to co-sponsor Senator Robert Graham's bill, S.1980. Urge your Representative to co-sponsor H.R.2239.

* Make sure Senators understand that you do NOT support either Clinton's or Boxer's voting bill.

* Remember this is a non-partisan issue. And please do not talk about conspiracy theories. There are enough PROVEN problems with the machines that you can focus completely on those.

* If they need information, you can provide it yourself from the resources listed below. Or contact us and we will send them responses to their questions or concerns.

* If they agree to co-sponsor or support the bill send us a report telling us. In the subject line, please say something like "S.1980 Report from [your state]" so we can identify it easily.

IMPORTANT when talking to Democrats: The Democratic National Committee has endorsed a resolution requiring a voter-verified paper trail on all election equipment. So be sure to mention that S.1980 is necessary to fulfill the need for a voter-verified paper trail endorsed by the party, since HAVA is not sufficient.

IMPORTANT when talking to Republicans: The Fairfax County Republican committee published a report on the 2003 election, calling it a failure and recommending all the measures required by S.1980.

Publicize this effort:

Cut and paste this text into your blog or bulletin board.

Download a petition, get it filled with signatures, and mail it to us at the address on the bottom of the petition.

Eye-catching Flyers:

Flyer for legislators. Download, print, and fax this one to legislators. Here's a color version.

Information to fax or to give as links:

When you talk to them, use your own words in your own way because it will be sincere, and it won't sound canned or scripted. They'll know the issue really matters to you. But if you need some help, or if they want to read some material on the issue, here are some things you can use.

Answers to FAQ: In this brief document, we have responses to some of the common objections and questions the legislators' staff have asked the volunteers. We suggest you read through this and keep a copy handy while you make your calls.

2-page introduction to the issue: Introduction-2-pages.pdf or Introduction-2-pages.htm

5-page introduction: Introduction-5-pages.pdf or Introduction-5-pages.htm

Brief, readable summary of the bill: HR2239_Summary.pdf or HR2239_Summary.htm

Disclosure of Software for Voting Systems. A discussion of the need for, and the advantages of, open software for voting machines.

S.1980 Text. The best link for the text of the bill. (If you copy/paste the link, you must include the last colon ":" in the link). This is a government website detailing the bill and co-sponsors.