Independent hoteliers cannot afford to sit out the 2026 elections
By Aaryan Patel
Independent hotel owners make decisions every day that directly affect the future of their businesses. We evaluate expenses, negotiate contracts, manage employees, review insurance costs, monitor taxes, and determine where to invest our capital.
Yet, one of the decisions with potentially the greatest long-term impact on our businesses happens outside the hotel. Voting.
For hoteliers, elections are not simply about politics. The people elected at the local, state, and federal levels ultimately help shape the environment in which we operate. Taxes, labor regulations, insurance policy, access to capital, development rules, tourism funding, and countless other issues can all affect the profitability and viability of a hotel.
That makes participation in the 2026 elections a business issue.
Policy Reaches the Property
Independent hotel owners experience government policy differently than many larger companies.
A national hotel organization may have teams dedicated to government affairs, legal compliance, human resources, and regulatory changes. Independent owners usually do not.
When a new requirement takes effect, the owner is often the person responsible for understanding it, paying for it, and figuring out how to implement it.
The effects can be especially significant because independent properties often operate with smaller teams and tighter margins. A cost increase that appears manageable on paper can have a very different impact when multiplied across payroll, utilities, insurance, financing, and property operations.
That is why owners need to pay attention not only to national elections but also to what is happening in their own states and communities.
A decision made at city hall can sometimes affect a hotel just as directly as one made in Washington, D.C.
Know the Issues Before the Candidates
Preparing to vote should begin with understanding the issues affecting your property.
Ask yourself what has changed most in your business over the last several years.
Have property insurance premiums increased? Are labor costs becoming more difficult to manage? Are regulations affecting development or renovation plans? Are taxes or assessments changing? Are there policies affecting tourism, short-term rentals, access to financing, or the way hotels compete in the marketplace?
Those questions create a much better starting point for evaluating candidates than simply following political advertisements or party labels.
Hotel owners should look at where candidates stand on the issues that influence their businesses, employees, guests, and communities. The goal is not for every hotelier to vote the same way.
The goal is for every hotelier to vote with an understanding of what is at stake.
Advocacy Does Not End on Election Day
Voting is important, but effective advocacy requires participation throughout the year.
Elected officials cannot understand the challenges facing hotel owners if they never hear from hotel owners.
Independent hoteliers have something particularly valuable to contribute to those conversations: Firsthand experience. We know what happens when operating expenses increase because we see the financial statements. We understand staffing challenges because we hire the employees. We see changing travel patterns because we talk to the guests. We understand how regulations affect small businesses because we are responsible for implementing them.
That experience matters.
Organizations like AAHOA provide owners with the opportunity to combine those individual experiences into a stronger industry voice. But an association can only be as effective as the engagement of its members.
Attend advocacy events. Meet your representatives. Learn who represents your district. Respond when AAHOA asks members to contact lawmakers about an important issue.
Most importantly, build those relationships before there is a crisis.
Make Your Voice Count
Independent hoteliers have always been entrepreneurs. We invest our own capital, accept risk, create jobs, improve properties, and contribute to the communities where we operate.
We should bring that same level of responsibility to the decisions that determine who represents those communities.
The 2026 elections will eventually end, but the policies created by the people elected this year will influence our industry long afterward.
Hotel owners spend countless hours protecting their businesses. Taking the time to understand the issues, evaluate the candidates, and cast an informed vote should be viewed as another part of doing exactly that.
Aaryan Patel is the chair of AAHOA’s Independent Hoteliers Committee. He is committed to helping hoteliers become – and stay – independent.
Image: Alena/stock.adobe.com
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