INFLUENCE YOUR COUNCILLOR
There are many ways to make your views known to City Council
- Inform your City Councillor
- Call, e-mail, fax or write him or her
- Set up a meeting with him or her
- Thank your Councillor when they vote in your favour
- Invite a Councillor to your events.
- Invite a Councillor to your community or organization.
- Speak to a citizen Advisory Committee
- Ask for their support
- Apply to be a member
- Participate in Public Consultations
- Organize a vigil or rally at City Hall
- Circulate a petition
- Put your views in the Media
- Write a letter to the editor
- Arrange an interview with the media
- Participate in municipal elections
- Ask a question at a candidate’s meeting
- Organize a candidate’s meeting.
- Support a Councillor running for office.
- Run for office, become a Councillor!!!
We can Make a Difference
Diverse women influencing city government is about influencing decision-making and policy so as to better life for everyone and promote economic equality and security – things like chid care, affordable and safe housing, income security and real measures to protect women from domestic violence.
Influencing City Councillors - 8 easy steps!
We all exercise influence every day – in our workplace, in our families, and with our friends! We may not use that word, but we use the same skills. With persuasion and persistence, we try to help others see our point of view.
Yet many of us have fears about influencing politicians – afraid we can’t express ourselves well enough, especially with someone we think knows more than us.
With a little experience you will find that politicians are just ordinary people – and they are eager to hear from, and be educated by constituents like you. Remember, there is no one more important to them than the people who can vote for them in their ward.
Giving Force to your Message
The more people your Councillor hears from, the more they will know this is an issue of concern to the community. Consider who might join you in expressing these concerns. Who are your allies and potential allies?
Make it easy to take the action. Provide them with:
- A sample message.
- Many people don’t know the name of their Councillor; help them to identify their ward and Councillor.
- Contact information: name of Councillor(s), phone, fax, e-mail, mailing address.
Phone Calls
- If Councillors get 10 messages/calls on an issue they sit up and take notice so imagine if they got 100!
- If a person prefers to not talk directly to a Councillor, they can just leave a message by calling before or after offices hours.
- In one case, Somali women, with limited English, wanted to ask their Councillors to support the Somali Women’s Support Line, as a service for women with limited English, so they just left their message in Somali.
E-Mail and Letter Writing
- Provide a sample letter to help people write their own letter. State the problem, the impact on your community, what you want the Councillor to do and ask them to get back to you.
- Avoid form letters, best to be in their own words.
- It can be short and to the point. You may send by fax or e-mail for quick delivery or by regular mail.
