In Conversation With Kate Mentink

Mentick Kate has not been submitted to the election this year (May 22), but if you are fully involved in the campaign of President's Party, Jose Ramon Bauza, and continues to lead the department for foreign residents Multilingual Calvia (almost 40% of the population), which works with local communities, associations and organizes events such as the Europe Day, Intercultural Week (with the collaboration of international schools), and the Christmas market Portals.

How has the population of foreign residents?

Before people came here looking for a 'little England' (or Germany) under the sun, but the profile of foreign residents has changed dramatically. 106 people currently reside different nationalities in the municipality of Calvia! Twenty years ago, in the Balearic Islands in general and particularly in Calvia, the average age was 60 up, now is between 36 and 38 years, with most between 18 and 44. There are still people who come here to retire, but are now many professionals and families with children - come for the quality of life and represent all the Balearic Islands and Spain. Now we have a second generation of them - 100% European, with a different perspective on life. They are the future of these islands, without a doubt.

So it's important to exercise their right to vote ...

Exactly. European residents who have registered the relevant form completed may vote in municipal elections. I think we'll see about 24 or 25 percent of them on the electoral roll - and I hope they vote. In Spain, less than 60 percent is considered very little, but is double the 2007 figure, which in turn was twice that of 2003. So they are starting to notice, with a little luck in 2015 doubling again.

Why are European residents can only vote in municipal elections?

The voting system is decided by agreement at European level and national level and any change in the voting rights in national elections would be decided in Brussels. Within the Spanish Constitution, it was agreed that once entered Spain in the European Union, Europeans could vote in municipal elections, but not in the Council of Mallorca or regional elections, the Balearic Government. Many European residents wish they could vote in these elections, and is something that I have been advocating through 'Europeans for Spain', but requires an amendment to the Constitution from the Spanish parliament.

Let me add one more thing: According to the 2002 Brussels Act, if you can vote in municipal elections here, you can also vote in municipal elections in your country, if you meet the requirements. If you have a house in Sussex or Halifax (England), Düsseldorf and Frankfurt, for example, you can vote here and there.

Why not show up to the elections this time?

Here the process is proportional representation: the party of each city or town elects its candidate, usually the mayor or leader of the party who ends his mandate and potential mayor make a list - the famous 'list' - of your team Councillors, if they win. In Calvia PP Onieva Manu chose as their candidate. As several of the aldermen of here, I've completed eight years (I was elected in 2003 and 2007) and the mayor says eight years is more than enough time to make it any Councillor (including himself) in a municipality, and is time for change.

What?

Now you asked me something that I have no idea. I've been working with Mr. Jose Ramon Bauza for a little over a year and has asked me to collaborate with the coordination of several committees - one for example, related to the nautical tourism. But my work has always had a clear focus on the 120,000 European residents of the Balearic Islands (22 percent of the population). I am the coordinator of the campaign-related PP these residents and I also make a link between Madrid and the Balearic Islands. I guess if you want to do something is related to that, but right now I do not know, nor do I know if he knows. We will see.

When did your passion for politics?

The women in my family have always been very interested in politics and policy studies at Glasgow for two years after graduating from college. Everyone in my family were conservative Tory, and like all rebellious student, I thought that was a great stupidity. My background - the only political formation that was available at that time in Glasgow - it was a branch of the Socialist party, so I became familiar with both sides.

After that, I spent much time traveling the world with my job and I had the opportunity to vote, much less that I vote for me. When Spain joined the European Union in 1986, and lived here and I became very interested in politics, and founded "European Citizens' in the early 90's. The Spanish President Felipe González said that we were all Europeans, but we could not vote, so we started a campaign to protest with banners in front of Interior Ministry in Madrid ... with no result in 1995, but in 1999 we were granted the right to vote! If there is one vote per person, no democracy. If you live in a country should be entitled to participate in the voting process.

It must be disappointing that so few people vote ...

Yes. Probably in part because many European residents believe that local elections are not important, and that the local mayor or the mayor has a position of no power protocol. But this is not the case. After the dictatorship, when he was creating the Spanish Constitution, the central government to regional government distributed immediately, and they in turn gave power to the municipalities. Your mayor or mayor has a huge influence, and influence what happens in your street, your area, cleanliness, the number of police officers, and a million other things that municipalities are responsible, and I think that message - maybe my fault, and others - there is still everything to come from citizens. When you go into politics as I did, you always want to do more ...