The Spire

Sean Rego ’26

Opinions Editor

In two decades of living, I’ve found that one of the most interesting geopolitical and transnational occurrences has to be the steady rise of conservatism in the 21st Century West. It isn’t just a conservatism that harkens to our parents’ age of Thatcher and Reagan, but more so it includes radical elements that paradoxically draw on older Western habits from many different nations.

Like any ideology, this rise takes many forms and priorities, whether that be isolationism, libertarianism or reformism. All in all though, this global, radically conservative surge seems to be united in surmounting the liberal order of the post-Cold War West. 

This change in political mood is ongoing in many countries, and the questions I find prudent to ask is where and why it is happening? More importantly, is this rising tide of western conservatism good or bad? Are we progressing or regressing?

Just recently, Javier Milei won the Argentine presidential election. He has been labeled as a conservative madman among other things. I don’t find myself agreeing with a lot of the media’s nicknames for Milei, as he truly seems to desire independence from economic peronism. Really, Milei is only truly conservative in the sense that he seeks to reconnect Argentina to the West and to bring back economic stability. Considering this, I’m slightly put off by the swift shunning of Milei, especially when his left leaning Latin counterparts (like Brazil’s controversial and anti-West Lula) were welcomed with open arms by the West. That being said, I can understand the concern with such eccentric figures rising to power.

Like Milei, our own populist Donald Trump rose to the presidency unexpectedly. Whatever you may think of him, his base (as well as most of the country to this day) believes that America is going in the wrong direction. Like Milei, the election of Trump seems to have been a backlash to the status quo of Bush and (even more so) Obama. It took herculean efforts on the part of Democrats to dethrone Trump in 2020 and even in current polls, Trump is the favored Republican nominee and may well ascend to power again. I think it is safe to say that Trumpism is America’s embodiment of the West’s growing conservatism. 

In Europe, we have figures like Italian leader Giorgia Meloni, who forged an unprecedented government and has emphasized Italian self-reliances without the perceived shackles of the EU. Currently Meloni is trying to pass the “mother of all reforms” to strengthen the cohesion of the executive branch (which many have called a power grab). The Netherlands too is seeing its own conservative surge with the rise of Geert Wilders, who has taken a strong anti-Islamic approach and hopes to defend Dutch identity and sovereignty. Again, we can say what we want about these policies, but it is the people of each nation that are voting for them. 

In France and Spain, we see unending protest against the ruling parties, who cling on to power in the face of growing support of the right wing parties (those being Partido Popular and Le Rassemblement National respectively). We may well see these nationalist, anti-immigration and eurosceptic parties in power in their next election cycles. 

In Germany, Romania, Portugal, and beyond, there are rumblings of change and instability. I fear the European Union (at least in its bureaucratically messy form) has its days numbered. Simply too many are displeased with governance that doesn’t fully represent their interests. We’ve already seen Britain’s conservative reformists shake off the continental chains, and how long will it be before others can no longer bear the flood of migrants and the energy crisis? Even certain parties that formerly supported current policies are beginning to shift. 

And then there’s the Americas. In Argentina, we have so-called anarcho-capitalism of Milei. In Brazil, Jair Bolsanaro’s right wing party remains a strong contender for power. In Canada, conservative opposition leader Pierre Poilievre seems set to beat the established (and increasingly unpopular) Liberal Party of Trudeau. 

Although there are other examples of this growing populist conservatism, I think these best represent that for a decade, the West has been having an ideological revolution. Of course, there are other growing national feelings– in America, the push for social democracy and social-justice comes to mind– but none seem to be as great a backlash to the prior decades as this one. 

 Truly, I cannot say that I completely agree or disagree with this civilizational movement. In some ways, I can sort of understand why many (especially in our media) are so vehemently against this change. Some of the things said by these figures are certainly bizarre, to the extent that they don’t seem conservative in a sense. For example, I find myself worried by some of the calls for isolationism, and how it conflicts with our desire for optimal trade and global peace. 

However, I think handling national interests first doesn’t preclude us from continuing our global efforts. We can and must be flexible and durable, which is why I can empathize with my country’s people when I see them turning their favor towards this new type of conservatism. Our recent leaders have done a pretty poor job of keeping the global order together as of late. Whether it be immigration, energy, the economy, diplomacy, social issues, the military or other things, things don’t seem dandy. Are we conserving the values that make America and her allies so great; that make us such beacons of hope, which incalculable numbers of individuals dream of replicating in their own homelands?

I do not fancy radical change. For many countries, I also am slightly worried what their own spin on new conservatism might mean. But at least for my own country I find solace in the fact that we have ideals worth protecting. This doesn’t mean that I think the West is bound to head down this uncertain path or that I believe it to be entirely good. Rather, this does lead me to believe that instinctively insulting and shaming this growing Western movement prematurely is unwise and slightly despicable. 

Whether you live in Europe, the Americas, Oceania or beyond, the world has indeed become more chaotic and unstable. Many great nations are succumbing to turmoil, hate and incompetence. The prowling of the Eastern authoritarian empires grow more daring each day, and we cannot be in a blissful slumber. That very well may be why we’re seeing a rise in Western conservatism; a brand-new yet oddly reminiscent call to action. Truly, whatever the circumstances, we must hope the right road is taken and in the end, we may endure not only as a nation, but as a civilization.

Copy Edited by Hannah Torrey ’27