Democracy and state government

Democracies are designed to reflect the will of the people they govern. But, this only works if voters are informed and aware of the voting records of their representatives. So, it's problematic when citizens don't know who represents them because there's little to prevent campaign promises and policy from diverging.

Unfortunately, this is often the case for state governments. While most US citizens know who represents them in local and federal politics, surprisingly few know who represents them at the state level. Is this because we have too many levels of government for citizens to keep track of? Or is it because state level legislation tends to be niche and receives minimal media attention?

Ironically, changes in state law are more likely to impact citizen's day-to-day lives than federal law. So, it's strange that our attention isn't allocated that way.