State and Local Affairs Lead, West
Friendly · Friendly US (Travel Required) · USD 230,000-265,000 / year · 8+ years experience · Remote · Posted Sep 29, 2026
At a glance
- Experience
- 8+ years experience
- Workplace
- Remote
- Location
- Friendly · Friendly US (Travel Required)
- Salary
- USD 230,000-265,000 / year · Base salary
- Visa sponsorship
- Visa sponsorship available
About Anthropic
- Anthropic’s mission is to create reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems. We want AI to be safe and beneficial for our users and for society as a whole. Our team is a quickly growing group of committed researchers, engineers, policy experts, and business leaders working together to build beneficial AI systems.
About the role
- We are looking for a State and Local Affairs Lead to engage with state and local governments in the Western United States, advancing AI policy, legislation, and regulation that supports Anthropic's mission.
- You will own Anthropic's relationships and legislative and regulatory work across many Western states, including a support role in California, engaging with state legislatures, governors' offices, attorneys general, state agencies, and local governments.
Responsibilities
- Serve as Anthropic's lead for state and local government affairs across many Western states, working in close coordination with the Head of Western States and other Regional State and Local Affairs Leads
- Build and maintain relationships with state legislators, legislative staff, governors' offices, attorneys general, and state agency leaders across your region
- Engage directly with local officials whose decisions affect Anthropic's work—mayors, city councils, county commissions, and economic development boards
- Track state and local legislation and regulatory proceedings affecting AI and the technology sector, provide analysis and intelligence to inform company strategy, and represent Anthropic's positions
- Build durable partnerships with local and regional organizations, including chambers of commerce, economic development groups, labor organizations, universities, and school districts
- Represent Anthropic at legislative hearings, regional events, and public forums, including with audiences who are skeptical of AI
- Work with the Communications team to develop clear, accurate messaging for regional policy campaigns
- Translate Anthropic's technical research and policy positions into engagement strategies tailored to Western state political environments
- Manage the outside advisors and registered lobbyists who support Anthropic's work in your region
- Coordinate with Anthropic's policy, communications, legal, and executive teams to ensure that regional activity aligns with company-wide positioning
Requirements
- Align with our mission and embrace the imperative of policy impact and change
- Have experience in state and local government affairs, political strategy, or legislative roles, with demonstrated success contributing to legislative and regulatory outcomes
- Have existing relationships with state and local leaders in the West, including legislators, governors' offices, attorneys general, or county and municipal officials
- Understand how state legislatures and executive branches work—committee processes, legislative and regulatory procedures, and how to move policy forward—and understand where local authority begins and ends
- Have a track record of executing on strategic objectives and delivering measurable outcomes in government affairs roles
- Are prepared to travel regularly across the region
- Bachelor's degree or an equivalent combination of education, training, and/or experience
- A field of study relevant to the role as demonstrated through coursework, training, or professional experience
Preferred qualifications
- Have 8+ years of experience in state and local government affairs, political strategy, or legislative roles
- Have experience building partnerships with external organizations including chambers of commerce, economic development groups, labor organizations, and universities
- Have exposure to technology policy or emerging technology regulation; you understand the unique challenges of navigating policy for rapidly evolving technologies
- Demonstrate understanding of how to build coalitions and identify aligned constituencies to advance shared objectives
- Can manage multiple priorities and stakeholder relationships across different states and adapt to different political environments
- Can work well under time pressure and manage competing demands
- Can translate complex technical topics into clear, accessible language for policymakers and residents alike
- Have experience working with communications teams to develop effective messaging for policy campaigns
Benefits
- Competitive compensation
- Competitive benefits
- Optional equity donation matching
- Generous vacation
- Parental leave
- Flexible working hours
Workplace
- Location-based hybrid policy requiring staff to be in one of the offices at least 25% of the time, though some roles may require more time in offices
- Travel required regularly across the region
