Residents of Munich, Germany have elected the city’s first openly gay mayor, Dominik Krause. At just 35, Krause won 56.4% of the vote, overcoming Social Democrat incumbent Dieter Reiter. His campaign platform centered around climate action initiatives, sustainable urban development, digitalization, and social policy, PinkNews reports. He is also the first mayor from the Green Party. Krause promised 50,000 new apartments to support Munich’s housing crisis during his campaign. The city is considered one of Germany’s most expensive and sees consistently high rents for residents.
After hearing the news, Krause thanked his fiance, Sebastian Muller, calling him “the love of my life,” and embracing him with a kiss on stage. Also after the win, he wrote on Instagram “Munich, you are simply insane! Our town has chosen to break the dawn today. Thank you for this incredible trust. Let’s get it on!”
His official campaign site lists seven primary objectives for his term as mayor. These include; implementing a new administrative culture, conversion agency for apartments instead of vacancy, preventing rent gouging, protecting green spaces, launching a taskforce for start ups and entrepreneurs, and more.
Krause will officially take office on May 1st.
