In a non-binding referendum, voters in Berlin, Germany passed a provision that would support the local government taking over a quarter million corporate-owned apartments in the city in an effort to curb rising rents that are making the city too expensive to live in, the Associated Press reports.
With nearly all the ballots counted, 56.4% of Berliners supported the take-over proposal, with only 39% opposed. The bill calls for the expropriation–or seizure–of the property by the local government; it did not specify if there would be any compensation.
The Social Democrats appear to have won the campaign for the city mayor’s office, allowing them to keep control, with the Green Party finishing second.