2026 GAD Institute

Hilton Columbus Downtown

July 21–23, 2026 | Columbus, Ohio

What to expect

The Government Affairs Directors’ Institute is an annual professional development conference for state and local real estate association professionals who provide guidance to and work for associations in the areas of government affairs, political affairs, legislative or regulatory affairs, lobbying, advocacy, RPAC fundraising, campaigns, community outreach and/or all REALTOR® Party initiatives.

This year’s event is being held in Columbus, OH and will start at noon on Tuesday, July 21, with an orientation and overview for new GADs and first-time attendees. GAD Institute sessions will conclude on Thursday, July 23, at approximately noon.

Questions? Contact us at GADInst@nar.realtor

Agenda

Plan your experience

The conference outline is available to help you plan your trip and schedule. Use the webpage outline for a quick look or download the PDF version for easy reference.

Registration Information

$600

Registration opens May 6, 2026, at 12:00 PM CT.

If capacity is reached, registration will close and interested parties can be added to the waitlist.

Cancelation Policy

All cancelations must be made in writing. Cancelations must be received by July 2, 2026 to be refunded in full. Refunds will not be approved for cancelations received after this date.

Questions? Contact GADInstitute@nar.realtor.

Hotel & Transportation Information

Plan your trip

🏨Hotel

Columbus Downtown Hilton
402 N High Street
Columbus, OH 43215

Check-in: 3:00 PM
Check-out: 12:00 PM

Hotel Room Rate: $209.00+tax per night

Hotel Reservation Deadline: Friday, June 26

Cancelation Policy: Rooms must be canceled 48 hours prior to arrival to avoid charges

✈️Transportation

Airport: John Glenn International Airport

Approximately 7 miles from the hotel.

Rideshare is recommended for convenient transportation to and from the hotel.

🏙️Explore Columbus

Visit Columbus: Things to Do

Meet Our Speakers

Featured speakers

DavidWassermanHeadshot

David Wasserman

Senior Editor & Election Analyst at The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter.
Neeley Erickson

Neeley Erickson

GAD Chair
Illinois REALTORS®

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Josh Veverka

GAD Vice Chair
Northern Virginia Association of REALTORS®

Lacey Everett Headshot

Lacey Everett

Local GAD
MIBOR

Vincent Coleman Headshot

Vincent Coleman

Local GAD
Columbus REALTORS®

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Ashlee Hendrickson

State GAD
Nebraska REALTORS® Association

Ashtyn-Gammons

Ashtyn Gammons

State GAD
North Carolina REALTORS®

Claire Berger

Claire Berger

State GAD
Maine Association of REALTORS®

Elizabeth Sharp Headshot

Elizabeth Sharp

Local GAD
Williamson County Association of REALTORS®

Gentry Thiesen Headshot

Gentry Thiesen

Local GAD
REALTORS® of South Central Kansas

Jeff Ledford

Jeff Ledford

State GAD
Georgia REALTORS®

Jerard Wright Headshot

Jerard Wright

Local GAD
Greater Los Angeles REALTORS® Association

Evoto

Josh McDaniel

State GAD
Texas REALTORS®

Matt Allen

Matt Allen

Local GAD
Land of the Sky Association of REALTORS®

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Nate Parsons

Local GAD
Broward, Palm Beaches & St. Lucie REALTORS®

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Ryan Adams

Local GAD
Birmingham Association of REALTORS®

Taylor Shanaman - Headshot

Taylor Shanaman

Local GAD
Seattle King County REALTORS®

Tim Beaubien Headshot

Tim Beaubien

State GAD
Arizona Association of REALTORS®

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Zack Brown

State GAD
Missouri REALTORS®

Helen Devlin Headshot

Helen Devlin

Senior Vice President, Strategy and Advocacy Operations
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Patrick Newton Headshot

Patrick Newton

Vice President, Advocacy Communications and Outreach
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Bryan Greene Headshot

Bryan  Greene

Vice President, Policy Advocacy
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Joe Harris

Joe Harris

Vice President, Government Advocacy
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Institute App

Stay connected during the conference

The GAD Institute App will be your go-to resource during the event. Access the full agenda, speaker details, real-time updates, and connect with fellow attendees—all in one place.

  • View session schedules and details
  • Access speaker information
  • Receive real-time updates and announcements
  • Connect with other attendees

Coming Soon!

GADs Give Back


Starting in 2018 as an initiative for attendees to give back to the host city, GADs Give Back continues as a core part of the GAD Institute experience.

In honor of their 40th anniversary, Homes for Families aims to transition 40 families from shelter into stable housing by July 21—the organization’s founding date.

Because after all, housing is for all of us.

Every $13,000 raised provides the means for one family to move into stable housing.

Goal: Raise $25,000 for 2026 GADs Give Back

Up to $50: Everyday Essentials

$150: Brighten a Home

$250: Nourishment and Comfort

$500: Stability & Care

$750: Family Foundation

$2,000: A Place to Call Home

Sponsors

Thank you to our sponsors

Diamond

Platinum

Gold

Event Policies

Important information

The GAD Institute is governed by policies developed in conjunction with federal, state, and local laws; the host venue; and NAR. Please review these policies here.

NAR is committed to providing a safe, in-person event. All attendees and exhibitors will be asked to agree to the event waiver during the registration process.

For more information, please see the Liability Waiver and Release of Claims.

David Wasserman 

Senior Editor & Election Analyst, The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter
NBC Contributor

David Wasserman is the Senior Editor & Election Analyst at The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, a renowned nonpartisan newsletter since 1984 known for its authoritative analyses of U.S. elections. He also contributes to NBC News.Wasserman is celebrated for his engaging presentations on the current political landscape, offering data-driven insights into national and local election trends, district-specific outlooks, and the intersection of consumer behavior and voting.

Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight.com lauds Wasserman’s deep understanding of political geography, while the Los Angeles Times describes him as “whip smart” and “scrupulously nonpartisan.” Chuck Todd of NBC’s Meet the Press has called him indispensable on Election Night.

In 2016, Wasserman earned acclaim for accurately predicting Trump’s path to the White House despite losing the popular vote. In 2020, Wasserman’s forecast of Biden’s win was correct in 49 of 50 states, missing only North Carolina. And in 2024, Wasserman correctly assessed that erosion in Democratic support among young and nonwhite voters made Trump the slight favorite to retake the White House.

His insights and commentary appear widely across major media outlets, and he received the News Data App of the Year award for his collaboration with FiveThirtyEight on the “Atlas of Redistricting.”

A prolific writer and speaker, Wasserman contributes to the Almanac of American Politics and lectures at institutions like Harvard’s Institute of Politics and the University of Chicago Institute of Politics, where he was named a resident Pritzker Fellow in 2019.

Jeff Ledford, RCE

External Affairs Officer

Jeff Ledford joined the Georgia REALTORS® staff in August 2016, and currently serves as External Affairs Officer. Jeff oversees political programs designed to protect the members of GAR from public policy decisions that may be harmful to private property rights and the real estate industry. He also serves as the spokesperson for GAR regarding legislative, economic policy, and political matters at the state and national levels. Jeff is GAR’s staff liaison for the Associations Collaborating Together Council, Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Action Committee, Property Management Council, REALTORS® Political Action Committee, and State and Local Governmental Affairs committees.

Jeff graduated from Georgia State University with a degree in Political Science and holds a REALTOR® Certified Executive designation. He has been a registered lobbyist since 1995 and served as Georgia’s 3rd Real Estate Commissioner.

Jeff represents GAR with groups including the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, American Legislative Exchange Council, Georgia Economic Developers, Association of Real Estate License Law Officials, Georgia Professional Lobbyists Association, Georgia Real Estate Trade Group and with various NAR Committees.

He and his wife Lisa reside in Kennesaw and have been foster parents since 2010; volunteering with Dream Weavers of Georgia, Giving Children a Chance of Georgia and Kennesaw Methodist Church. They have 7 children and a house full of pets.

Jerard Wright

Local GAD
Greater Los Angeles REALTORS® Association

Jerard Wright is a native Angeleno that has an abiding passion for advocating on community building, transportation and housing issues.

Jerard has been the Government Affairs Director with the Greater LA REALTORS® (GLAR) since November 2020, leading the charge to better mobilize and engage Real Estate members on important real estate and quality of life issues that are important to the business community. This year he serves as BizFed PAC Chair and was immediate past chair of the Government Affair Directors for the California Association of REALTORS®.

Before joining GLAR,  he served as a Policy Manager for BizFed leading the organization to sponsor and sign into law a homeless housing relief bill AB 1097 (Santiago) in 2019, which helped streamline affordable and supportive housing projects in LA County.

Before joining BizFed, he was a transportation Policy Analyst for Move LA for 5 years. Providing research and information around revenue generation and transportation policy. At Move LA he successfully organized the business and faith community around supporting the $100B infrastructure investment program Measure M that passed in 2016 with over 71%.  His transportation advocacy first started as a volunteer with “Friends 4 Expo” a grassroots coalition of neighbors who were in support of building the Exposition Light Rail line.

Jerard graduated from the Illinois Institute of Technology with a BA in Architecture and Urban Planning.

Neeley Erickson

GAD Chair
Illinois REALTORS®

Neeley Erickson is a Government Affairs Director at Illinois REALTORS®, where she has earned recognition for her expertise in legislative and housing policy. Her dedication to civic engagement has been acknowledged with recognition by her local associations, state, and community. She has earned the WREX Inspiring 815 Award and a spot on the Rockford Chamber of Commerce’s 40 Under 40 list.

Before joining Illinois REALTORS®, Neeley spent six years as the Legislative Aide for a State Representative in the Illinois House, where she assisted local governments, advocacy groups, and constituents in navigating state programs and services. This experience, combined with her comprehensive knowledge of local government processes—gained as an elected trustee and Finance Chair in her hometown from 2012 to 2019—has deeply informed her work in public policy.

For the past six years Neeley has been a driving force at Illinois REALTORS®, advocating for policies that safeguard private property rights and promote housing affordability. She served on the National Association of REALTORS® Fair Housing Committee, collaborates with Government Affairs Directors (GADs) nationwide, served on the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) GAD Advisory Group, and is the currently the NAR GAD Advisory Vice-Chair.

One of her proudest achievements was uniting civil rights groups, tenants’ rights advocates, and REALTORS® to establish the Crime Free Housing Coalition of Illinois, which aims to eliminate discriminatory crime-free housing policies. Neeley has also been a featured speaker at the HOPE Fair Housing Center’s annual conference on housing justice and is highly regarded as a resource on housing issues.

Taylor Shanaman

Local GAD
Seattle King County REALTORS®

Taylor Shanaman is the Government Affairs Director for the Seattle King County REALTORS® (SKCR). A Washington native, Taylor grew up in Tacoma and earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Washington State University. During her time at WSU Taylor interned for the Washington State Attorney General’s Office in the communications department. Prior to her current role with SKCR, Ms. Shanaman had worked for three state and local REALTOR® associations: Washington REALTORS® as the RPAC Fundraising Coordinator, the Tacoma Pierce County REALTORS® as Government Affairs Director, and Government Affairs Director for Oregon REALTORS®.

Over the span of her 12-year career, Taylor has been responsible for various REALTOR® advocacy programs, her favorite of which being building and improving the association’s RPAC culture. She resides in Bellevue, WA with her eight-year-old cocker spaniel named Chowder. She likes audiobooks, dog parks, and Costco. She dislikes ketchup, bugs, and the Discovery Channel’s hit show Gold Rush.

Bryan Green

Vice President, Policy Advocacy
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Bryan Greene is Vice President of Policy Advocacy at the National Association of REALTORS® where he oversees all legislative and regulatory advocacy on behalf of the association’s 1.4 million members. Bryan joined NAR in November 2019, and spent his first year at NAR raising the association’s profile in Washington and nationwide on all fair-housing-related policy matters as NAR’s first Director of Fair Housing Policy.Before joining NAR, Bryan served for ten years as the highest-ranking career official in HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO), where he oversaw the policy direction and operational management of the 600-person office enforcing the nation’s housing anti-discrimination laws. Under Bryan’s leadership as FHEO General Deputy Assistant Secretary, HUD pursued large-scale, high-profile cases that addressed systemic discrimination and provided widespread relief. Bryan also managed HUD’s Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) and HUD’s Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP), which together provide over $70 million to state and local government agencies and nonprofit organizations fighting discrimination in local communities.

Bryan has held other senior positions at HUD during his three decades at the agency, including a stint as the Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Affairs in HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R), where he worked to reduce regulatory barriers to affordable housing.

Bryan was the 2007 recipient of the Presidential Rank Award, the highest federal honor bestowed upon federal senior executives for outstanding service.

Bryan earned his degree in Government from Harvard University.

Helen Devlin

Senior Vice President, Strategy and Advocacy Operations
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Helen Devlin is the Senior Vice President, Advocacy Strategy and Operations. In this capacity, Helen develops and coordinates our strategic activities/agenda across Advocacy teams. Helen also leads the team responsible for Advocacy Communications, Political Meetings, Community Development Advocacy, and Advocacy Financial Affairs. She continues to lobby House Republican Congressional offices. She has been working in the Advocacy Group of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) in Washington, DC for over twenty years as part of the Lobbying Team. Prior to this, Helen served as the primary liaison for NAR to the Congressional delegations of six states, including Kentucky, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama, and Missouri.

Joe Harris

Vice President, Government Advocacy
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Joe Harris joined the National Association of REALTORS® in August 2015, after serving two years as Vice President of a bipartisan lobbying firm located in Washington, D.C. and eight years in senior legislative positions in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate.

Joe currently serves as Vice President of Government Advocacy, where he guides NAR’s federal lobbying and political strategy with regard to the U.S. Congress and White House. In Congress, he served two years as Counsel to former U.S. Senator and Vice-Presidential nominee, Joe Lieberman (CT), and six years as Legislative Assistant and later as Legislative Counsel to former House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt (SC). He advised both Senator Lieberman and Congressman Spratt in the areas of tax, financial services, economic policy, budget and trade, among other issues.Joe is a graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law and Davidson College, where he currently serves as a member of the Davidson College Board of Visitors. He is also a frequent guest presenter at the Public Affairs and Advocacy Institute and the Kogod School of Business at American University.

Patrick Newton

Vice President, Advocacy Communications and Outreach
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Vice President of Advocacy Communications and Outreach at NAR and co-host of The Advocacy Scoop podcast. Patrick joined NAR in 2019 to lead advocacy communications, media relations, and strategic messaging. Previously, he served as press secretary for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and spent nearly a decade on Capitol Hill as communications director and legislative adviser. Before Washington, Patrick was a news anchor and reporter across seven states.