When a former aide to New York’s governor was charged this year with acting as a Chinese agent, the federal indictment suggested a surprising level of interest by Beijing in state-level governance in the United States.

Chinese espionage at the national level, like hacks and the theft of trade secrets, is big news. But intelligence officials and prosecutors say that Chinese diplomats and their intermediaries are increasingly dangling prizes — travel benefits, pandas for local zoos, even salted ducks — as a way to shape local policy or curry favor in a city hall or statehouse.

Here’s why.

Access to national leaders has diminished.

There was a time when members of Congress made regular trips to China. Those have all but stopped. In many parts of the United States, China is so unpopular that a lawmaker could pay a political price for visiting.

Some members of Congress may also see it as risky to associate with people who are close to Beijing. Representative Eric Swalwell, Democrat of California, underwent a two-year ethics investigation after reports that a suspected Chinese spy had helped with fund-raising for his 2014 campaign. Investigators decided to take no action and closed the matter.

For Beijing, local leaders are the next best thing.

“As Washington’s attitude toward China toughens, the attitudes of the states are critical,” reads a 2019 study by a Chinese research organization and Tsinghua University in Beijing.