DEAR CONGRESS
Election Day doesn’t end our power.
You hold office. We hold you accountable.
The people’s documented priorities are your starting point—not a campaign slogan to discard after Election Day. Use trusted national polling and constituent surveys to guide your work. Show which public priority each action serves.
What will you do?
By when?
How will the people know?
Who signs what?
People add their names to the People’s Covenant Request. Candidates and current officeholders read and sign the Public Trust Candidate Covenant. Adding your name does not endorse a candidate.
The People’s Covenant Request currently covers House candidates and Speaker commitments. Read each form’s scope before signing.
The Public Trust Petition and Survey are separate actions. Taking one action does not sign you up for another.
DO THE JOB—OR STEP ASIDE.
If you won’t serve the people, resign. We want someone who will.
If evidence shows you broke the public’s trust, we will document it, expose it and press the proper authorities for investigation, prosecution or removal where warranted.
Signing a promise doesn’t wipe the slate clean.
Got a better way? Show us. Bring the facts. Make your case to the people you work for. If they reject your case, our demand is that you follow their direction.
These public demands do not change existing signed Covenant terms. Refusal to sign alone is not proof of a crime.
From public priorities to follow-through.
Survey = DirectionTell us what matters.
Petition = StrengthShow our strength in numbers.
Covenant = CommitmentPut officials’ promises in writing.
PAM = AccountabilityTrack the work and press for results.
Each instrument is separate. Public Trust Petition →
New Congress. Same public priorities. We’re keeping track.
The sitting Congress can act now. We demand action before Thanksgiving. Get enough votes to pass it—even over a presidential veto. Incoming members: put your promises in writing now. We’ll track what you do once you take office. A change of Congress does not erase the public record.
Historical note: The People’s October Surprise
The People’s October Surprise framed the earlier organizing effort around written commitments and public accountability before the election. The campaign continues across the congressional transition.
What did they promise? What did they do?
PAM—the People’s Accountability Model, also called the PHIERS Accountability Model—is how we track promises, money, work and results. Compare their promises with the work and the results. Demand answers for delays and failures. If they take a different road, tell us why—and what happens next.
How we keep track: the five PAM questions
- PromisedWhat did you promise?
- FundedWhat got funded?
- SpentWhat was spent?
- DoneWhat did you do?
- ChangedWhat got better?
Contact an official and ask for a response
Contact your representatives
Read the Covenant and copy an invitation →Prefer to call? Call 202-224-3121 and ask for your representative’s or senator’s office.
“I’m a constituent. Will you sign the PHIERS Public Trust Candidate Covenant? Where can I send the link, and when can I expect your answer?”
What do people want fixed?
National polls and local surveys show what people say matters most. That’s the work we demand they do. If officials take a different road, they owe us an explanation.
End the war. Stop escalation NOW. Demand immediate congressional action to end the war with Iran and stop military escalation.
Cost of living
Food, housing, and household bills.
How will you help people afford everyday life?
Affordable healthcare
Getting the care you need at a price you can afford.
How will you make care more affordable and accessible?
Democracy and elections
People having a voice, votes counted fairly, and lawful results respected.
How will you protect people’s votes and make government answer to them?
Education and children
Strong schools and support for children’s health, learning, and well-being.
How will you help children succeed and support the families caring for them?
Immigration
Immigration rules that work and a fair legal process.
How will you make immigration rules work fairly and protect people’s legal rights?
War and peace
Preventing war, pursuing peace, and answering for military decisions.
What will you do now to stop further escalation in the Middle East and pursue peace? Congress: how will you use your war powers, funding authority, and oversight?
Fuel and energy
Affordable, reliable energy.
How will you make energy affordable and dependable?
Community safety
Preventing violence and helping people feel safe.
How will you prevent harm and strengthen public safety?
Government and public trust
Leaders who listen, spend public money responsibly, and do what they promised.
What will you do—and how can the public check your work?
Jobs and opportunity
Dependable jobs, training, and chances for local businesses.
How will you help people earn a living and build a future?
These ten topics come from public research. They are not one poll’s top-ten list. People can agree that a problem matters and disagree about how to fix it. PHIERS wrote these questions to ask leaders what they will do.
Add your priorities through the Public Trust Survey. The Survey and Petition are separate actions.
See the polls and sources ↗
- Cost of living: Cost concerns · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- Affordable healthcare: Voting issues · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- Democracy and elections: Voting issues · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- Education and children: Voting issues · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- Immigration: Voting issues · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- War and peace: Election issues · AP-NORC, Oct 15 ↗
- Fuel and energy: Cost concerns · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- Community safety: Voting issues · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- Government and public trust: Government scope · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
- Jobs and opportunity: Job-market concerns · Pew, Oct 8 ↗
Pew’s October 8 reports ask voters which issues matter and adults which costs worry them. AP-NORC’s October 15 report looks at election concerns. We do not mix those answers into a single ranking.
Pew asks about the size and role of government. PHIERS also asks leaders to explain their spending and follow-through. The polls do not endorse the answers or solutions we ask leaders to consider.
Congress can act NOW.
Pursue impeachment and conviction where the evidence warrants it.
The House must investigate and act on impeachable misconduct. The Senate must hear the evidence and vote on conviction. The coming change of Congress is no excuse to wait.
How impeachment and conviction work
A simple House majority adopts articles of impeachment. Conviction and removal require two-thirds of senators present. This is separate from overriding a presidential veto. Refusing to sign a Covenant is not evidence of impeachable misconduct.
Read the Senate’s explanation →Got a better plan? Show us.
Look at our plan for healthcare, lower costs, meaningful work and stronger communities. Advance PHIERS—or bring a better plan. Show the cost, who benefits and when people get relief.
Explore the PHIERS solutions →
Step 3: They need to hear from you.
Add your name. Get their promises in writing. Stay organized. Track the results.
Explore PHIERS further
You don’t have to learn the whole system before taking part. When you want more, explore the existing START explanation, practical solutions, and the work behind PHIERS.