Alternative History

The Conservative Party of Ireland is the center-right party in Irish politics, which traditionally has endorsed a strong role for the Catholic Church in civil society, a deemphasis on organized labor and government ties to businesses, and a strong national defense. The Conservatives currently control the Presidency with Mary McAleese, and are in a majority coalition with the Christian Democrats and First Ireland Party led in the Dail Eireann by Enda Kenny, the incumbent Taoiseach.

The Conservatives once dominated Irish politics until they split three ways in 1939, leading to a fragmented political right intimidated by the Christian Democrats during their time in power between 1948-57 and until the 1961 elections, when the Nationalist Party disbanded, and 1967, when the Christian Democrats finally agreed to form a coalition with the Conservatives. The Conservatives retook the Presidency in 1985 with the election of Albert Reynolds, only to lose it following the unpopular Icelandic War in the early 1990's. The Conservatives returned to power with the victory of McAleese in the 2003 Presidential election as well as their rise to power in the 2004 Dail elections.