ELECTION 2026 - Los Angeles has been shaken by a powerful corporation pouring money into Mayor Karen Bass’s campaign in an apparent bid to secure pay-to-play influence.
Airbnb is a major multinational which connects tourists with second homes, investment properties, or entire houses—and makes money by taking fees from both sides of each booking. The corporation looks to mayor Karen Bass to make more opportunities available to them.
Mayor Bass` proposed budget asked the Planning Department to craft a limited vacation-rental program that would expire on December 31, 2028.
Airbnb has contributed close to $3million on the Bass race just as the mayor advanced this favorable policy the company supports. Central City Association, an advocacy group heavily financed by Airbnb, invested around $1.6 million into efforts supporting the reelection of mayor Karen Bass. Interestingly the Planning Department originally opposed the policy. In an April 2 ,2026 report the department said that allowing second homes and investment properties to be listed as short- term rentals could take housing units off the market and result in higher rents citywide. However, a few days later it reversed its position and now supports it. Unquestionably, a governance debate has been turned into a crisis of political trust.
Under the city’s Home‑Sharing Ordinance, residents may rent only their primary residence for stays of 30 days or fewer, provided they register with the city and meet strict eligibility requirements. To expand its inventory, Airbnb wants access to properties now excluded from the program, including second homes, investment properties, corporate‑owned apartments, and other non‑primary residences.
Multiple news outlets report that Bass’s proposed city budget quietly includes provisions that would expand Airbnb’s access to housing stock. The international host could be allowed to rent out second homes and investment properties through 2028.
LAist has reported that Airbnb was the second-largest contributor in this year’s mayoral race. The Airbnb money to support her went through independent expenditure committees, Political Action Committees backing the mayor seeking reelection. Legally, it is considered a clean donation, but politically it is highly explosive.
Obviously, Airbnb has devoted substantial resources to shaping the political leadership of the city where it is seeking advantageous regulatory change.
Airbnb also paid about $2.3 million to Bridge Street Inc., a company led by former Councilmember Martin Ludlow, for organizing and canvassing in support of its proposed regulatory change. The company also donated $750,000 to the Los Angeles Jazz Festival, which Ludlow organized. Although scheduled for last month, the festival was abruptly canceled.
Councilmember Nithya Raman had noted that Airbnb’s spending was disclosed hours after she held a press conference exposing the proposed rule change.
I see this as a major setback for Los Angeles’ housing crisis. Giving Airbnb access to currently restricted units could severely disrupt the market, converting thousands of homes intended for Angelenos into tourist rentals that favor nightly profits over community stability.
Los Angeles housing must not become a tourist commodity, and long-term homes must not be converted into short-term rentals. Giving a global corporation access to thousands of units is more than poor policy, it directly harms residents. These homes should house Angelenos, not temporary visitors.
Bass should have avoided even the appearance of a pay‑to‑play relationship with Airbnb. When a regulatory decision benefits a major corporate spender, public trust erodes, and any suggestion that policy rewards a donor rather than protects residents undermines City Hall’s legitimacy.
A mayor must unequivocally demonstrate independence and transparency by keeping campaign funding separate from public policy. Anything less fuels cynicism, weakens democratic accountability, and implies that the city’s housing future is for sale.
If this continues, Angelenos will question whether regulations serve residents or corporations capable of influencing elections. With public trust already fragile, even the appearance of a transactional relationship with Airbnb weakens the mayor’s moral authority and the credibility of urgently needed housing policies.
By establishing and enforcing clear guardrails, a mayor can dispel the appearance of “pay‑to‑play” and counter the corrosive belief that city laws are negotiable. Ethical governance is not a posture but a practice—and during a housing crisis, it is the least Angelenos deserve.
Los Angeles’s housing crisis poses a defining moral challenge for city leaders. Nearly half a million low-income renters cannot find affordable homes, many families spend more than half their income on housing, and construction continues to fall short of demand. Our politicians must not disregard struggling residents while creating windfalls for powerful corporate interests.
Undeniably, what is being sought by Airbnb is not a coherent government strategy, but a vision of city authority conceding at the worst possible time.
To counter criticism and to improve its image, Airbnb is offering the city support through Airbnb.org’s emergency‑housing commitments, positioning the company as a civic partner. This approach reminds me of a sword with sharp edges on both sides: philanthropy on one, policy ambition on the other. Generosity is being used as political insulation.
The stakes are too high to even consider such proposals. Families need homes and homes should not be taken off the market for the benefit of corporate interests. We cannot allow the line to be blurred between house availability and a corporation’s long-standing wish list.
Renters are already stretched to the breaking point. If Airbnb had its way, the long-term rental supply would shrink. And when housing supply shrinks, rents climb higher. Even worse, vacancy pressure becomes intolerable.
A July 2026 peer-reviewed study in Regional Science and Urban Economics found that Airbnb’s entry into U.S. cities increases eviction filings as landlords replace long-term tenants with more profitable short-term rentals. The mechanism is straightforward: when short-term rental revenue exceeds long-term rent, landlords have an incentive to evict tenants.
When homes are treated as investment assets, people take to the streets. Across the World, housing shortages have fueled large-scale, sustained, and increasingly confrontational protests, often driven by evictions, soaring rents, and the conversion of homes into investment assets. Spain has witnessed some of the largest demonstrations. In Barcelona, about 100,000 people marched against the housing shortage, chanting, “people without homes and homes without people.” In Madrid, outrage followed the eviction and death of María del Carmen Abascal, 87, who was removed from the apartment where she had lived for more than 70 years.
In Porto, Portugal, demonstrators pitched tents in a central square to protest the housing crisis, calling the occupation an “act of political desperation.” Protests continue in Amsterdam under the slogan “houses for people, not for profit,” while Athens has seen major demonstrations over soaring rents, severe housing shortages, and the collapse of affordable student housing.
This is a moment where Los Angeles demands housing clarity, not accommodation. It is obvious that people deserve a mayor who remembers that homes are not inventory, neighborhoods are not revenue streams, and policy is not a favor to be aligned with outside spending. The stakes are nothing less than the future of who gets to live here.
Before the mayor and city council rush to approve the Airbnb ordinance that would fix the city budget on the backs of renters, they should take notice of recent events around the world. Los Angeles cannot effort a similar uprising before and during the Olympics, that could conceivably spell bankruptcy for our city.
Key question is whether the "Olympics-only" program morphs into more permanent in the city`s housing market.
I am reminded of the warning not to let a camel’s nose under the tent, because the rest will soon follow. I fear that, in Bass’s tent, the camel is already inside.
(Nick Patsaouras is an electrical engineer, civic leader, and a longtime public advocate. He ran for Mayor in 1993 with a focus on rebuilding L.A. through transportation after the 1992 civil unrest. He has served on major public boards, including the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Metro, and the Board of Zoning Appeals, helping guide infrastructure and planning policy in Los Angeles. He is the author of the book "The Making of Modern Los Angeles.")
