It's often claimed that it's easier and more impactful for people to get involved and make change through state and local politics than through federal politics because federal politics is much more crowded. On the other hand, most of the issues that EA focuses on are national and global: we're often trying to influence global governance, mitigate global catastrophic risks, facilitate global development, and so on. And in the United States, at least, the federal government has the most obvious leverage points for foreign policy, through which we can influence global issues. Are there a lot of opportunities for EAs to influence state and local politics re: EA causes? Should we prioritize federal or state/local politics?
My own thoughts: In farmed animal welfare, I think it's possible for EAs to influence state governments to fund research and development on alternative proteins (especially through land-grant universities like Cornell University in New York) and improve regulations on animal agriculture. It may also be possible to change state and local environmental laws to improve wild animal welfare.
Update February 4, 2022: I've become more convinced that most EAs interested in influencing policy should not frame EA causes as foreign policy issues. While this is a useful framing for some organizations (e.g. Center for Security and Emerging Technology, Center for Global Development), it's inherently limiting because it is very difficult for the average citizen to influence foreign policy. It's easier for the average citizen to influence national domestic policy, and easier still for them to influence state and local policy.
Also, I've thought of more EA causes that could be worked on with high leverage at the subnational level: