San Francisco Rejects ‘Anti-Airbnb’ Housing Proposition

San Francisco residents rejected a controversial measure limiting the number of short-term accommodation rentals to 75 nights a year per unit, results of a citywide vote revealed Tuesday night.

According to the city’s election website, Proposition F lost with approximately 45% in favor to 55% against after the roughly 133,500 votes were counted.

The measure gained notoriety over the past week largely because of the involvement of homegrown lodging website Airbnb, which spent more than $8 million campaigning against it and whose short-term rental model would have been most affected had the measure passed.

Proponents of the legislation, many of whom stormed Airbnb headquarters on Monday afternoon, say the company is decreasing housing availability and thereby exacerbating homelessness.