START OF A NEW ERA FOR EUROPEAN COMMUNITY...

THE Partido Popular victory in the Balearics was not only a victory for the Conservatives but also a victory for the European community. “This is the start of a whole new era for Europeans living in Calvia and the Balearics in general,” said Kate Mentink, the PP's British councillor in Calvia yesterday. “European residents and the European community were shunned by the left wing Balearic government and in particular by the socialists in Calvia. “This time around, with nearly twice as many EU residents voting than in 1999, European voters have shown that they can make a difference, can effectively participate in the local community, have a say and seen that democracy works,” she said. “We (the PP) has a European project which just about got going before the 1999 elections, but since has been abandoned by the left wing government, now however, we can start all over again but this time, it has a new impetus because the European community has really come alive, demonstrating that it wants to get involved and has a voice which needs to be heard. The PP at all levels, from local to autonomous government, are more than willing to listen to that voice,” she said yesterday, adding that the foreign vote was important to the PP's victories and gains, especially in Calvia. “We made a concerted effort to respond to the needs of and cater for the European community over recent years and we were rewarded, not only with the foreign vote, but also with the vote from mainland Spaniards. “It's been a lot of hard work, but it's been more than worth it,” Mentink said yesterday.
The PP's biggest gain this time was in Santa Ponsa, traditionally a PSOE strong hold “but this time a lot of the local Spanish, from the mainland, voted for the PP or another party and we reduced the PSOE majority from nearly 700 to just under 123. “We also gained a lot in Son Ferrer, another socialist strong hold. In Palma Nova we were almost equal, same in Magalluf, we won but with a margin of less than one hundred. These were all previous Socialist areas and we even reduced the PSOE majority in Galatzo which was good.

Which voters did you pick up most, the business sector?
I think, we picked up a lot of support from citizens in general who had just had enough and I think that was the case across the islands with people fed up with the coalition government which, apart from all its ideals and talk, just has not functioned. They were getting idealism mixed up with business and it was losing jobs and people were closing down. “Despite what the government was saying about tourism being up, the people aren't stupid and here in Calvia, we depend on tourism,” Mentink said.
What's the biggest mistake Calvia council and mayor Margarita Najera made over the past four years?
The biggest mistake the mayor made was that she lost total contact with her citizens and in municipal elections they don't forget that. She's had an enormous power base and, of course, still has ten councillors, which is not to be sneezed at. But I think it's very significant that she's not going to have control of the Town Hall and that the socialist party no longer has control of the regional government either, so we're going to see a major change in attitudes to tourism, attitudes to foreigners, the imposition of Catalan but obviously nothing will change over night.” How many foreigners do you think voted PP?
I think nearly all of them who voted, voted PP. The trouble was, as we got it from nearly all the polling stations, that people who believed they were on the census to vote, were not.

Is that going to be investigated along with the foreign vote block allegations? “Yes it is, it's all part of the same inquiry being ordered by the European Union.” If any one's had any problems and have not contacted the PP, should they come forward? “Yes, come forward, the investigation has not stopped because it's almost 100 per cent definite that we'll be in power in the Town Hall. Once the audit of the council debt has been carried out, we've got to look at the foreign census because it is not accurate, we have got to find out exactly who lives here.” How crucial was the foreign vote? “The difference was just 242 votes, so it was absolutely crucial because there were obviously a lot more Europeans who voted.” And the majority voted PP?
Absolutely, for definite. I'm sure there were one or two who voted socialist, perhaps a few voted UM, may be even for the minor parties, but the vast majority voted for the PP because we've been working with them for all these years. It's as simple as that.

I think that in the municpal elections they don't so much vote for a right wing, left wing or nationalist party, they vote for the person they know, the person who has worked for them and the person they think is going to help them once in the Town Hall.” Did you honestly think, in your heart of hearts despite what you said, that the PP would do so well? “I always thought so, I've never ever had any doubts about it. The only question in my mind was are we were going to get ten seats or are we going to get 11 and the absolute majority on the day. I had no doubts at all, especially once I got to know Carlos, the team and the PP's programme for change Calvia.” Did the PP win Calvia or did the socialists lose it? “I think the PP won Calvia. We worked very hard, it was not a two week campaign. Carlos has been working for three years and a number of us, candidates, have been involved for months, particularly since February 8 when the candidates were named and the citizens have appreciated that.” How long ago do you think the elections were won? “I think the swing actually started when Carlos was appointed leader of the PP, which is when the citizens started to see and realise that there was a viable alternative that could work.

But also once the rest of the team and the proggramme, our manifesto were made known. The socialists did not really do a manifesto, statements were made, but no proper manifesto was produced and distributed amongst the electorate. The PP produced one for each area of Calvia in three different languages, so people knew what they were voting for and I think that also made a major difference.” editorialUmajorcadailybulletin.es