The New Conservative Right: A Paradigm Shift in Europe?

The elections of June 9, 2024 for the European Parliament are for many one of the most important dates of this century, undoubtedly the most important and momentous European Parliament elections ever. Normally, the European elections have been just another ‘formality’ without any importance, in which most of the time, they have had a much lower turnout compared to the national elections of the Member States.

However, the multitude of problems that Europe is suffering has made the importance of these elections even greater. We see how a sector, specifically what I call “the new conservative right,” has emphasized the importance of voting in the European elections and how there can be a significant change if the traditional parties are ousted, as they have been in several countries at the national level.

Massive Illegal Immigration, Sovereignty, Agriculture, Gender Ideology and Birth Rate

Massive and illegal immigration, sovereignty, agriculture, gender ideology and demography are the key issues that are overshadowing the rest. The new conservative right knows this and knows that these issues will be key in the voting decision.

Illegal and mass immigration has been the main issue of the parties of the new conservative right. Working class people see their neighborhoods changing and crime increasing, something that is rare in Europe, as something that used to characterize European countries was the joy of having great security on the streets. However, this has changed.

In Spain, Spanish barons commit 58 percent of sex crimes being 90 percent of the population, immigrants commit 42 percent being only 10 percent. In France, in 2022, foreigners in Paris, despite representing between 15 percent and 20 percent of the population, were responsible for 70.4 percent of robberies with violence and 75.6 percent of thefts. Sweden is the EU member state with the highest rate of gun murders; in fact, the only country not at war with more bomb attacks than Sweden is Mexico.

No-go zones are also something that have emerged in the last 10 years in Europe, with France, Belgium and Sweden being three of the countries with the highest number of such zones, caused by the non-integration of immigrants. Saint Denis, Molenbeek, El Principe… are some of these no-go zones, places where the rules and laws of the country are not respected and are governed by their own rules, where the police can not even enter.

05-07-2017 @ Rue de l’Avenir, Molenbeek (Photo: Lieven SOETE / Flickr.com)

Likewise, one of the points that the conservatives have also touched on is demographics. Demography is one of the big issues in Europe. We see how the Old Continent is suffering a demographic winter, where fertility rates are plummeting and returning to post-war times. For example, in my country, Spain, the fertility rate is the lowest in the entire European Union, with a rate of 1.13%, the lowest since 1942, in that year, Spain was isolated, poor and only 3 years had passed since the end of the Civil War.

Having children is not purely a question of money, which in part it is, but it is because of the mentality and ideology that has been established in public opinion.

We see how many mainstream media, political parties, academics… talk about the huge cost of having a child, or even the cost it has at an environmental level, as for example the newspaper El País said “Not having children to avoid contributing to the environmental debacle“. Also, gender ideology, added to third wave feminism, the LGTB lobby, the normalization of abortion… has reached a point where having a child, especially if you are young, is seen as a “rara avis”.

This has led many Western leaders to see the perfect opportunity for the normalization of mass immigration. Scholz, in 2023, said he expected naturalizing 2 million immigrants and softening the immigration law to attract up to 400,000 non-EU immigrants. In Spain, we have experienced it a few weeks ago, when the fact of regularizing half a million people was supported with the positive vote of all parties except Vox.

Farmers protesting in Poland in 2024 (Photo: Adrian Kot / Flickr.com)

We have seen how in recent months, the demonstrations of farmers to demand less bureaucracy, less taxes and fair competition have overshadowed the media in all European countries. First it started in the Netherlands, then it spread to France, Spain, Poland, Romania, Belgium, even reaching the European Parliament where there was a real pitched battle.

The free market of the Member States of the European Union was born as one of the fundamental pillars for their mutual benefit. However, the European Union causes unfair competition with agreements with third countries, since third countries can use products prohibited in the EU, which do not have the same working conditions and do not have controls. Moreover, they do not go through the same requirements. A recent example, was that a Moroccan company sold strawberries with hepatitis A, which means that those strawberries were grown with waste water. Hepatitis C can cause symptoms such as fever, tiredness, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dark urine and yellowing of the skin or eyes (jaundice).

The spirit in which the European Union was born was to benefit the European countries that made up the union, but that changed with the trade agreements with third countries, directly harming European farmers.

Sovereignty has been a slogan repeated by every European conservative politician, the best example of what sovereignty stands for is what Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary, said at CPAC Hungary.

First of all, perhaps, in a sovereigntist world order there will be no global ideology to which everyone must conform. In that world, the actions of states will be determined by their national interests, and each independent nation will act according to its own national interests. I also think that in a sovereigntist world order, the true sovereign is the people—or, as our guests would say, “popular sovereignty.”

Finally, gender ideology is another of the issues that the conservatives have been most charged with. For the European right, the normalization of this ideology is the real disaster, making this type of ideology spread is what can really destroy European societies, making them: weak and immoral. A perfect ‘cocktail’ for a society to commit suicide.

To see the extreme that has been reached with this ideology, in Scotland. The Scottish Government has produced new guidance on LGBT integration that allows children as young as four to change their name and sex at school without parental consent.

Manifests of Cooperation: NatCon, CPAC Hungary and the Concept of MEGA

In the last few months we have seen conferences and large-scale events that have brought together great speakers to discuss and explain the current problems in Europe and why they should change. The three most important events have been the following: National Conservative 2, CPAC Hungary and MEGA (Make Europe Great Again).

All three events have been a reflection of the importance given to the European elections by the various parties, think tanks, organizations and associations.

The new conservative right sees how it can change the course of the European Union and as they say, change a Europe of bureaucrats to a Europe of free and sovereign nations.

A paradigm shift at the European level would mean the end of a social democratic and liberal model, something that has alarmed the political establishment. The clearest example of this was seen just a week ago with the famous conferences organized by National Conservatism (NatCon), where politicians, analysts, journalists and important figures of the new conservative right were to give their respective speeches.

However, the socialist mayor of Sint-Josse-ten-Node, Emir Kir, urged the mayor of Brussels to send the police to stop the event for “disturbing public order”. Many of the speakers and voters of the new right have complained, arguing that the action was an act of pure hypocrisy, since Kir says that a conference in a building where everything happens in total tranquility and without any hint of violence, declares that it is disturbing the public order when they do not act equally and with the same forcefulness against illegal immigration and the crimes they commit.

NatCon Brussels 2 conference in Brussels, Belgium in 2024 (Photo: NatConTalk / X.com)

The attempt to close the event was a clear sign of fear and showed the land of democracy, freedom and tolerance censor conferences. Can you imagine what would happen if Viktor Orban, Giorgia Meloni or any conservative leader brought the police to stop liberal, progressive or left-wing conferences? They would be called fascist, back to Nazism or whatever. Besides, the international coverage would be published and covered by all the mainstream media, besides being denounced by most Western politicians and heads of state.

Manifests of Momentum: Polls

The new conservative right, formed by the ECR group (The European Conservatives and Reformists) and the ID (Identity and Democracy), is shaping up to shake it all up and to be able to change the course of the votes in the European Parliament although they hardly have the possibility of an absolute majority, since they would need the EPP (European People’s Party).

In the latest polls, such as that of EurActiv, the conservative groups would obtain fourth (ID with 82) and fifth place (ECR with 81), although they may end up obtaining third and fourth, since parties such as Fidesz and AUR are not usually counted for these groups since they are not ascribed.

The new conservative right is shaping up to change the European paradigm and it knows that it can win and that it can achieve it, despite the discrepancies there may be, it can be seen that the conservative right is mostly united.

We see how Mateusz Morawiecki goes to CPAC Hungary, we see how people from the MCC and conservatives allies with Hungary go to the MEGA event organized by a think tank close to AUR. Most conservative politicians say it “if we are united for common causes we will win”. The global conservative right has followed in the footsteps of the left and have understood their political game, which is to unite and share agendas so that together they can be stronger.

Conclusion

After having been to the last two events held by the new conservative right (CPAC Hungary and MEGA), talking to different politicians and conservative journalists, I have come to the conclusion of one thing: optimism in the conservative world.

Despite the fact that many have been struggling for years on the issues we have discussed and despite the fact that there have been very harmful policies, you see politicians convinced that this year is the year of change, a year in which they can return to common sense, a hopeful year for conservative ideas.

This is something I have not seen in many years in conservatism and on the right in general, a rampant optimism in most European countries and outside Europe, as for example in Argentina with Javier Milei or in El Salvador with Nayik Bukele, in the United States with Donald Trump. So, my conclusion is that regardless of the results of the new conservative right in Europe and Donald Trump in the United States, one thing is certain, for them it is the final battle to change things and return to common sense.