Who is Mels?
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I joined Volt in 2019 because our political system was stuck, and we could not wait to take action. Since then, I have had the privilege of building this movement alongside thousands of volunteers, staff, and elected officials, from organising in Amsterdam to leading campaigns and becoming Co-President. Now, the world around us is changing even faster, and the need to deliver on Volt's promises has never been more urgent. I am running for re-election because Europe cannot wait. We need action to make Volt win, now.
My Volt Journey
My Volt Journey
CAMPAIGN VOLUNTEER
I first got involved with Volt after reading the Amsterdam Declaration following Brexit. Volt was still new and largely unknown, but its vision for a united, progressive Europe was compelling enough to make me politically active for the first time. Together with fellow volunteers, we organised events and actions ahead of the 2019 European elections. Volt received 2% of the votes, not enough for a seat, but enough to show that national success was within reach. That potential is what made me want to keep going and what showed us that Volt's mission is possible.
CITY LEAD AMSTERDAM
After the 2019 European elections, Volt needed to rapidly expand its grassroots base to be competitive in future national elections. Together with a passionate group of volunteers, I coordinated the buildup of the Amsterdam chapter, establishing the team structure and strategy that laid the foundation for what became the largest local Volt community in Europe and one of the main forces in the city's local politics.
NATIONAL COMMUNITY ORGANISER - VOLT NETHERLANDS
After a fulfilling period of volunteering, community organising was the start of my professional career in politics. After helping build the Amsterdam chapter as city lead, I took on a national role overseeing all local and regional chapters across the Netherlands. Together with a growing community of volunteers, we built up Volt's teams, coordinated expansion, and led chapters through the 2021 national elections and 2022 local elections, in which Volt won its first-ever seats in Parliament and local councils. The volunteers were the driving force behind every success. My role was to build the conditions for them to make it happen. By the end of this role, Volt Nederland had grown to over 12,000 members nationwide, and the Amsterdam chapter had grown to over 2,200 members, making it the largest Volt community anywhere in Europe.
CAMPAIGN LEAD - VOLT NETHERLANDS
The Netherlands held two major elections during this period: provincial and national. As Campaign Lead, I led strategy and execution across both, together with an extraordinary force of volunteers and a small professional team. With far fewer resources than established parties, Volt entered every level of Dutch government within just three years. In the 2023 provincial elections, the first Volt ever participated in, we won 11 seats across 8 provinces, also sending 2 senators to the upper house. In the 2023 national snap elections, Volt earned 178,802 votes and won 2 seats in parliament. During this period, we guaranteed Volt's presence in all levels of government, a first for our party in any country.
CO-PRESIDENT OF VOLT EUROPA
As your Co-President, I have had the privilege of leading Volt together with the board, staff, and an incredible community of volunteers and chapter leads across the continent. Together, we grew Volt's community from 26,600 to almost 40,000 members and supporters in less than 3 years. After becoming Co-President, I was charged with leading the 2024 European Parliament campaign. In that election, Volt made history by running in 15 countries with one programme, earning over 1.1 million votes, and increasing our presence from 1 to 5 MEPs. Now, Volt stands at over 300 elected officials shaping policy at local, regional, national, and European levels, inside and outside the EU.
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