During the political season, you may be surprised to learn that you can find the fax numbers for most U.S. politicians. Of course, this will fax information to their offices, but often it’s another way to communicate with a local congress member or senator in addition to trying to reach them by phone or email. Faxing documents can be more secure than sending email attachments, as recipients won’t have to fear malware being hidden inside a clickable link. Sending a letter by mail remains one of the most reliable ways to contact a politician, but there are some downsides to this.
In this article, we’ll show you where you can find the fax numbers for various candidates, representatives, and institutions. We’ll also give tips for faxing politicians.
Where Can I Find Politician Fax Numbers?
U.S. House of Representatives
Congress is made up of representatives from each state based on the congressional districts. A state can have only a few representatives while larger states with higher populations can have 52 (such as California). For this reason, you’ll want to find the contact fax number of your representative through the Find Your Representative site.
By entering your ZIP Code, you’ll be able to see the congressional district you’re currently in, as well as the representative who represents that district.
That representative will have their name, party affiliation, and website/contact information below (indicated by the computer and mail icons). Select the Contact option to see the options for contacting that representative. This will differ depending on the website’s representative, and some may not share options for faxing them.
If you don’t see a phone number to fax, try scrolling down to their office information to find a phone/fax number.
U.S. Senate
To fax a senator, head over to the Senate.gov contact site. You’ll need to choose your state name if you don’t already know the name of the senator you want to contact.
You’ll have a few options for contacting senators, listed below on this website. For faxing senators, find the senator you want to contact and then find their Contact page. The layout of this site will depend on the senator, but they usually have fax numbers next to their office locations.
In this example, the fax machine icon underneath the handheld phone represents the fax number.
State and Local Government Representatives
Representatives for your local government will be far more specific to your area, so there’s no easy way to immediately find a specific representative. However, you can use USA.gov to find local government contact information by narrowing in by state and county.
Once you’ve obtained the information for your local government, you can search for their name + contact information on a web search like Google. You can then find a local government representative’s fax number on their Contact page, similar to how it’s listed for U.S. senators.
Candidates running for office
Candidates not elected but currently running for office will usually also have a website with contact information. These are a bit more difficult to find if you don’t already know your candidates’ names. You can use a site like Ballotpedia to find candidates running for various elections by year. In this example, we can see the 2024 candidates for various elections:
From here, we can begin our search based on states, counties, and districts. Just like with senators, we can find the names of candidates and search for their contact information on a site like Google.
This is also a useful way of learning more about candidates for your local elections to understand more about them.
FAQs
Can I fax my ballot?
All states are required to optionally fax ballots to U.S. citizens living abroad, but returning a completed ballot by fax is decided on a state-by-state basis.
For citizens living in the country, almost always the answer is no, but if you need to submit an early or absentee ballot for an election, you should check with your county clerk’s office to see what you’re required to do beforehand. Sites like Vote.Org have absentee ballot tools to help you obtain the forms that you need. Sometimes these forms will need to be faxed, other times they will be mailed only.
If you do have the ability to fax your ballot, you may need a transmission cover sheet in front of your ballot to protect your privacy and give the election office the necessary information about you. Fax.Live also provides free generic cover sheets as well.
Should I fax or mail representatives?
Before the fax machine and digital communication, mailing was the best option for contacting a local or state representative. For most candidates, you can still do this. It’s one of the most reliable ways to eventually get hold of your representative.
However, mail is sometimes called “snail mail” for a reason: It can be slow. Not only does the mail have to reach the representative, but it also must be sorted through by their office, which can take time. If they reply to you, they’ll likely do it via mail, so it’ll also take time to get back to you.
If you have a time-sensitive issue that you want a reply for, you’re better off faxing.
What should I put in my fax?
If you want to get heard, and not ignored, most sites recommend being brief, clear, and very human in your message. You’ll need to structure your fax professionally with your contact information, a respectful “Dear…” to start and a “Sincerely,” at the closing show respect.
The message itself should be respectful but also honest, avoiding excessive anger, threats, and intimidation. Instead, stay respectful and use good grammar, as that will improve your chances of being taken seriously.
Additionally, don’t fax the politician frequently if you aren’t getting replies. You’ll quickly be sorted into spam and be ignored. It takes time to get a reply, so don’t expect it right away.
Keep track of your sent and received faxes with your Fax.Live dashboard. Send your first fax today!
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