The core puzzle which the World of the Right seeks to explain is whether it is appropriate to talk about the radical right wing as a global phenomenon rather than a separate set of movements. The book looks at the ideology, strategy and consequences of the growing international movement of the right-wing. This work should find a broad readership as it has relevant findings for comparative politics, political theory and international relations.

The argument the authors make is that there is indeed a global network of radical right-wing groups although there is no central coordination. This movement can be considered global, firstly, because of the transnational interactions between actors. This manifests itself most obviously in a variety of conservative conferences which have been organized, such as CPAC and NatCon, which bring together radical right leaders and activists from around the world. These transnational interactions have created unlikely links between seemingly disparate groups such as US white nationalists and Indian Hindu nationalists. Secondly, the rights define themselves in terms of the global. Despite ideological differences among the individuals and parties, the radical right is united by a nationalist opposition to liberalism and globalism. They see themselves as seeking to defend middle and working-class people from a global managerial elite. This elite is using its power to undermine sovereignty, and freedom of speech, and threaten traditional cultures. The authors argue that many on the radical right have turned to the work of Italian Marxist Antonio Gramsci to guide their approach to politics. This has led to the right seeking to create its own intellectual institutions to provide a response to the hegemonic control of the managerial elite. The authors conclude by considering the effect that this movement is having on international politics by helping to destabilize the Liberal International Order (LIO).

The ideology of the radical right is most fully discussed in Chapter 3. The concept of global managerialism provides the core idea which unites the radical right. Global managerialism is the idea that a new class of liberal elites has risen to power. This new elite includes unelected bureaucrats and experts, particularly those who work for international government organizations. In addition to this, the new elite includes those who hold cultural or economic power such as corporate executives, journalists and academics. The new elite interests lie in further liberalism and globalization which erode sovereignty, national communities and traditional social orders. This idea of managerialism provides the radical right with a common enemy which can form the basis of transnational alliances. Whilst there may be ideological divergences within the radical right movement, opposition to managerialism allows for “powerful equivalences” between groups. That is to say that despite differing national contexts radical right parties can claim that different peoples are under the same common threat from the global elite.

In order to understand how to fight this global elite the radical right has adopted some of the approaches advocated by Gramsci, which are discussed in Chapter 2. Of particular importance is the notion of hegemony. Hegemony, in Gramscian terms, is the idea that power comes from the consent of the oppressed caused by the naturalization of the worldview of the ruling class. The right has appropriated this concept to argue that the liberal elite has used their control of institutions to create a culture where their ideas are hegemonic. To fight this hegemony the right needs to engage in a counter-hegemonic effort to mobilize the social groups marginalized by liberalism.

The counter-hegemonic approach of the right is detailed in Chapter 4. Here, the authors discuss how the right is undertaking a “war of position” to produce intellectuals who can critique and provide alternatives to the existing liberal order. There are two main parts of this war of position: right-wing publications and the development of educational institutions. The aim of this is to develop a radical right elite which is capable of providing an intellectual counter to the liberal hegemony.

The implications for international relations of the emergence of the radical right are explored in Chapter 5. The emergence of the radical right is adding to the undermining of the LIO. The radical right has adopted a stance of differentialism, the belief that no one culture should be seen as superior, on the international stage. This manifests in opposition to what they see as the UN and broader liberal elite’s anti-family agenda. This stance has enabled the radical right to make alliances with traditionalists in the Global South to oppose Western-imposed values. In adopting this stance against Western superiority the radical right has found common cause with illiberal states, such as Russia and China, who advocate a more multipolar world.

This book will make essential reading for those who are interested in understanding conservatism and the dynamics of the radical right. The book also provides a thoughtful consideration of the implications and challenges which emerge, particularly at the international level, from the emergence of the global right.

The main area where the book needs greater clarification and discussion concerns the relationship between radical conservatism and mainstream conservatism (or center-right). Part of this is a conceptual issue of which groups should be considered part of the global radical right. The authors mention that the relationship between the mainstream and the radical right is blurred but there could have been more discussion here. The UK context provides an interesting case to consider as most would place Reform as being part of the radical right but the status of the Conservative party post-Brexit is less clear. There has been a rightward turn in the party with some aspects of the radical right agenda being adopted such as an increasing skepticism towards the European Court of Human Rights. However, the party also has a strong one-nation element and all its leaders since Johnson have supported Ukraine since the invasion in 2022, not joining the radical right’s call for multipolarity. Future scholars could seek to provide clarity on this to give a greater sense of the extent of the radical right and its relationship with the mainstream.

A related issue which could have been explored is the implication of the global radical right for political competition in established democracies. Of particular importance here is the established right. Are new radical conservative parties going to squeeze the established right, take over existing parties (as the MAGA Republicans arguably have done) or compete alongside existing conservative parties? If conservative parties cannot survive will this lead to an international trend of political competition being orientated around the center(-left) liberals vs radical conservatives? This is another issue scholars could look at to build on this work.

Nevertheless, this book will make a fascinating read for those interested in political ideology, party competition and international relations. In the time since its publication in 2024, the trends which this book identifies have become more prominent with the re-election of Donald Trump and Elon Musk declaring his support for the AFD in Germany and Reform in the UK. Therefore, gaining an understanding of the potentially global nature of the radical right is timely and should inspire further scholarly discussion.