“If at 20 you’re not on the left, you have no heart; if at 40 you still are, you have no head.” Although it is often attributed to Winston Churchill, it is actually an anonymous aphorism that—somewhat worn out by now—circulates easily because it fits a seemingly common-sense intuition: the values associated with youth—utopianism, rebellion—seem to align better with the left, and vice versa. But in the case of young men in Spain today, that intuition clashes with the numbers. And that is a serious problem for the left, one that has surfaced in the midst of debate about its future.
The ball was set rolling by Emilio Delgado, a regional MP for Más Madrid, who took advantage of the attention surrounding his talk on Wednesday alongside Gabriel Rufián to reiterate a warning. The left, he said in [Eldiario.es](http://Eldiario.es), still has “work to do” to reach “young men.” Later, he elaborated on Cadena SER: in addition to defending women and LGBTQ+ people, the left must win over “boys between 18 and 24.” He repeated the idea at Wednesday’s event. Many “young guys,” he said, have “difficulty” seeing the left as “their home.”
Delgado has stumbled somewhat in presenting his thesis. After facing criticism for including in his argument that heterosexuals should not be “made invisible,” he has been careful to stress that he is not calling for any retreat from defending feminism and LGBTQ+ people, but rather for simultaneously conveying to young men that these causes are not an attack on their “masculinity.” The apologies he had to offer after his initial remarks, along with the flood of reactions to his appeal, show how divisive the debate can be. For some, he dared to address a taboo subject. For others, he bought into a right-wing framing.
What is undeniable is that the left has a problem—and not only the alternative left. A February poll by 40dB. shows that men aged 18 to 28 form the group least likely to support PSOE, Sumar, or Podemos. In all three parties, the largest gender gap among centennial voters appears in this age bracket, with young men consistently less willing to back them.
The contrast is provided by Vox. A striking 38% of men aged 18 to 28 plan to vote for Santiago Abascal. The three state-wide right-wing forces with a chance of entering Congress—PP, Vox, and Se Acabó la Fiesta—together total 49.6% voting intention in this group, compared with just 14.1% for their three counterparts on the left.
**Climate, taxes, feminism**
In the voting intentions recorded in the last five surveys by CIS and 40dB., eight out of ten times the results for PSOE, Sumar, and Podemos are better among young women than among young men. So the phenomenon is not a statistical mirage; it is a stable position. And it did not fall from the sky—it is the result of an ideological shift to the right. Among all age and gender groups, men aged 18 to 24 are the second most right-leaning (5.48 on a 1–10 scale), surpassed only by women over 75. In addition, they are the least concerned about climate change—a flagship issue for the left—and the group most likely to see immigration as the country’s main problem, a core theme for conservative forces, according to CIS data.
The ideological drift also affects attitudes toward taxation, a topic on which young men are heavily exposed on social media to influencers campaigning against the tax authorities. Men under 25 repeatedly appear among the groups most opposed to taxes, according to the latest CIS monographic survey from July 2025. The starkest data concern tolerance of tax fraud. In response to 14 CIS questions, in 11 cases the group most lenient toward cheating the tax authorities is the 18–24 age bracket. They are also the group most likely—nearly 45%—to say that the main reason for tax fraud is that taxes are “excessive,” compared with 19.5% of the population as a whole.
On equality and diversity, signs of a break from the trend of progressive consensus among the youngest men have been visible for more than two years. In a July 2024 survey by 40dB., boys under 27 were the group most likely (43.6%) to support the idea that “there should be a heterosexual pride day.” This is not a figure determined by age alone, but by age and gender combined. This is shown by the fact that the group least in agreement with that statement (16.5%) is their female peers. It is pure ideological polarization by gender. Another figure: nearly 27% of boys under 27 say they feel “uncomfortable” seeing a same-sex couple—more than double any other group. They are a minority, yes, but more than one in four.
The most discouraging picture for those who believed feminism was moving toward broad, cross-cutting hegemony was shown by the CIS in its first survey *Perceptions on Equality* in November 2023. Above all, because of men aged 16 to 24—the group most likely to think that men are the ones who are discriminated against (51.1%), and the least likely to believe that women have to make greater efforts to obtain the same job (40.9%). All of this converges in the fact that men under 25 are the group that, on a scale where 0 is “not at all feminist” and 10 is “very feminist,” place themselves closest to 0 (5.05).
That’s probably because we look at the system and have determined it just doesn’t work. We don’t see any tangible results.
Its all run by the rich people and they’ll do what they want anyway. Regardless of our support or not.
I’m sure the main cause is propaganda from right wing sources. I see their talking points popping up all over the legacy and social media.
Maybe the reason is, that “the left” is still advocating open borders, eventhough anyone with a brain can see the current state of Europe and results of mass migration.
That’s so weird??? I don’t find that at all to be the case on Reddit? Must be propaganda!
The left needs to get back to what actually made people vote for them in the first place. Promote workers rights, higher standards of living, fight the inequality. These issues are MASSIVE but the right is getting away with shifting the focus towards “the left only wants open borders and more regulation” as if the right wants anything more than “lower taxes for the rich”…
Immigration. All they have to do is deal with that and everyone will vote for them again (myself included).
the left has forgotten that the point of teaching history is to not repeat the mistakes of our ancestors, not to make us responsible and take the burden for their mistakes. maybe they never understood that lesson in the first place.
Welp people are fed up with ppl not sharing their values and refuse to integrate. Yet “the left” insists on their ideology and steers straight into the abyss. Denmark shwed that both left poltitics but strict immigration rules work. In times of crisis sadly nobody gives a fuck about climate change so they’ll lose whats left of their voters
I just want to point out that the left has governed Spain for 7 years by now so the argument of “but the left hasn’t been the government for ages” is moot.
I wonder why. Maybe left movements who represented exclusively by far left is a bad thing. I’m sure many people who turned away from left parties and values did it because were personally attacked by far-left upon trying to have reasonable discussion with them.
After all modern far-left operate under motto “Either you agree with us about everything or you’re our mortal enemy” . Even if person agrees with them on 90% , they will be labeled as worst person Earth ever known.
So people still believe there’s left and right on political spectrum?
IMO
Lots of left main proposals about immigration, integration, work, family, social structure.
We’re just a lot more fringe than they understood. The left top politicians and thinkers were very elitistic and actually didn’t have a clue about what their intended voters really wanted.
All in all, they are flabbergasted that the population is indeed much more conservative than what they thought.
Most of their voters agree on their economic proposals though. But they spend the last 20 years expanding in topics people don’t want them to get into IMHO.
The answer is splitting cultural and economic left.
The moment we generalise about the left right centre is when we stop understanding the problems.
Both aides have positive things to offer and negative ones as well.
Let’s talk about problems for what they are not the way we feel about them or if it is right or left.
The only young people flocking to the hard right are young men and, let’s be honest, they’ll come back once they’ve realised that being eternal virgins is no fun.
People is not turning their back on the left. The left is turning its back on the people.
This story is bullshit. Young women have never been more leftwing.
The far-right provides a vision. (It’s a crappy rEtUrn tO tHE pASt type of vision but at least it promises to make life better for the average person)
The modern far-left fails to provide any coherent vision beyond “equality” but how is equality on its own going to make my life better? Equality without prosperity is pointless.
If only we could have more leaders like Denmarks Mette Frederiksen. She’s leading a left-wing bloc of political parties, but still has a very firm stand on immigration.
Right now alot of countries are stuck between woke idealists who refuse to see mass immigration as anything but a strength and right wing Russian puppets only interested in self gain.
One major issue is that liberal policies are seen as left policies by young ppl, they do not even know anymore what “left” actually means. which is just another US import.
Garbage from US is creeping in.
This is what happens when the left cares more about Palestine & immigrants than about their own country & nation. The left is truly out of touch with society these days, and unfortunately, the far right has filled the gap, and now we are seeing the consequences.
IMO, some gender politics and ideas have played a role, especially in driving away young men
If you think the left should adopt racist migration policies and police-state border control policies, you are wrong.
If you think that the left should focus on workers’ rights, democratic control over the economy and equality, you are right.
But hey most leftists are all for this it’s just that the mainstream media refuse to cover that and a lot of would-be leftist political parties gatekeep their base so all you ever see is culture wars bs.
The left needs to start selling a better future. It needs to propose us a future to dream for.
All the left can promise nowadays is for things to not get worse. Which is good, I don’t want things to get worse. But mostly I want them to get a whole lot better.
“The left” You mean the green neolibs guilt tripping their voters into tightening their belts to “save the environment”, while housing prices keep growing astronomically?
And even if they are focusing on economic issues, they think “being right” is enough, they don’t need to explain anything to the voter.
And having a likeable charismatic leader? Blasphemy.
27 comments
“If at 20 you’re not on the left, you have no heart; if at 40 you still are, you have no head.” Although it is often attributed to Winston Churchill, it is actually an anonymous aphorism that—somewhat worn out by now—circulates easily because it fits a seemingly common-sense intuition: the values associated with youth—utopianism, rebellion—seem to align better with the left, and vice versa. But in the case of young men in Spain today, that intuition clashes with the numbers. And that is a serious problem for the left, one that has surfaced in the midst of debate about its future.
The ball was set rolling by Emilio Delgado, a regional MP for Más Madrid, who took advantage of the attention surrounding his talk on Wednesday alongside Gabriel Rufián to reiterate a warning. The left, he said in [Eldiario.es](http://Eldiario.es), still has “work to do” to reach “young men.” Later, he elaborated on Cadena SER: in addition to defending women and LGBTQ+ people, the left must win over “boys between 18 and 24.” He repeated the idea at Wednesday’s event. Many “young guys,” he said, have “difficulty” seeing the left as “their home.”
Delgado has stumbled somewhat in presenting his thesis. After facing criticism for including in his argument that heterosexuals should not be “made invisible,” he has been careful to stress that he is not calling for any retreat from defending feminism and LGBTQ+ people, but rather for simultaneously conveying to young men that these causes are not an attack on their “masculinity.” The apologies he had to offer after his initial remarks, along with the flood of reactions to his appeal, show how divisive the debate can be. For some, he dared to address a taboo subject. For others, he bought into a right-wing framing.
What is undeniable is that the left has a problem—and not only the alternative left. A February poll by 40dB. shows that men aged 18 to 28 form the group least likely to support PSOE, Sumar, or Podemos. In all three parties, the largest gender gap among centennial voters appears in this age bracket, with young men consistently less willing to back them.
The contrast is provided by Vox. A striking 38% of men aged 18 to 28 plan to vote for Santiago Abascal. The three state-wide right-wing forces with a chance of entering Congress—PP, Vox, and Se Acabó la Fiesta—together total 49.6% voting intention in this group, compared with just 14.1% for their three counterparts on the left.
**Climate, taxes, feminism**
In the voting intentions recorded in the last five surveys by CIS and 40dB., eight out of ten times the results for PSOE, Sumar, and Podemos are better among young women than among young men. So the phenomenon is not a statistical mirage; it is a stable position. And it did not fall from the sky—it is the result of an ideological shift to the right. Among all age and gender groups, men aged 18 to 24 are the second most right-leaning (5.48 on a 1–10 scale), surpassed only by women over 75. In addition, they are the least concerned about climate change—a flagship issue for the left—and the group most likely to see immigration as the country’s main problem, a core theme for conservative forces, according to CIS data.
The ideological drift also affects attitudes toward taxation, a topic on which young men are heavily exposed on social media to influencers campaigning against the tax authorities. Men under 25 repeatedly appear among the groups most opposed to taxes, according to the latest CIS monographic survey from July 2025. The starkest data concern tolerance of tax fraud. In response to 14 CIS questions, in 11 cases the group most lenient toward cheating the tax authorities is the 18–24 age bracket. They are also the group most likely—nearly 45%—to say that the main reason for tax fraud is that taxes are “excessive,” compared with 19.5% of the population as a whole.
On equality and diversity, signs of a break from the trend of progressive consensus among the youngest men have been visible for more than two years. In a July 2024 survey by 40dB., boys under 27 were the group most likely (43.6%) to support the idea that “there should be a heterosexual pride day.” This is not a figure determined by age alone, but by age and gender combined. This is shown by the fact that the group least in agreement with that statement (16.5%) is their female peers. It is pure ideological polarization by gender. Another figure: nearly 27% of boys under 27 say they feel “uncomfortable” seeing a same-sex couple—more than double any other group. They are a minority, yes, but more than one in four.
The most discouraging picture for those who believed feminism was moving toward broad, cross-cutting hegemony was shown by the CIS in its first survey *Perceptions on Equality* in November 2023. Above all, because of men aged 16 to 24—the group most likely to think that men are the ones who are discriminated against (51.1%), and the least likely to believe that women have to make greater efforts to obtain the same job (40.9%). All of this converges in the fact that men under 25 are the group that, on a scale where 0 is “not at all feminist” and 10 is “very feminist,” place themselves closest to 0 (5.05).
That’s probably because we look at the system and have determined it just doesn’t work. We don’t see any tangible results.
Its all run by the rich people and they’ll do what they want anyway. Regardless of our support or not.
I’m sure the main cause is propaganda from right wing sources. I see their talking points popping up all over the legacy and social media.
Maybe the reason is, that “the left” is still advocating open borders, eventhough anyone with a brain can see the current state of Europe and results of mass migration.
That’s so weird??? I don’t find that at all to be the case on Reddit? Must be propaganda!
The left needs to get back to what actually made people vote for them in the first place. Promote workers rights, higher standards of living, fight the inequality. These issues are MASSIVE but the right is getting away with shifting the focus towards “the left only wants open borders and more regulation” as if the right wants anything more than “lower taxes for the rich”…
Immigration. All they have to do is deal with that and everyone will vote for them again (myself included).
the left has forgotten that the point of teaching history is to not repeat the mistakes of our ancestors, not to make us responsible and take the burden for their mistakes. maybe they never understood that lesson in the first place.
Welp people are fed up with ppl not sharing their values and refuse to integrate. Yet “the left” insists on their ideology and steers straight into the abyss. Denmark shwed that both left poltitics but strict immigration rules work. In times of crisis sadly nobody gives a fuck about climate change so they’ll lose whats left of their voters
I just want to point out that the left has governed Spain for 7 years by now so the argument of “but the left hasn’t been the government for ages” is moot.
I wonder why. Maybe left movements who represented exclusively by far left is a bad thing. I’m sure many people who turned away from left parties and values did it because were personally attacked by far-left upon trying to have reasonable discussion with them.
After all modern far-left operate under motto “Either you agree with us about everything or you’re our mortal enemy” . Even if person agrees with them on 90% , they will be labeled as worst person Earth ever known.
So people still believe there’s left and right on political spectrum?
IMO
Lots of left main proposals about immigration, integration, work, family, social structure.
We’re just a lot more fringe than they understood. The left top politicians and thinkers were very elitistic and actually didn’t have a clue about what their intended voters really wanted.
All in all, they are flabbergasted that the population is indeed much more conservative than what they thought.
Most of their voters agree on their economic proposals though. But they spend the last 20 years expanding in topics people don’t want them to get into IMHO.
The answer is splitting cultural and economic left.
The moment we generalise about the left right centre is when we stop understanding the problems.
Both aides have positive things to offer and negative ones as well.
Let’s talk about problems for what they are not the way we feel about them or if it is right or left.
The only young people flocking to the hard right are young men and, let’s be honest, they’ll come back once they’ve realised that being eternal virgins is no fun.
People is not turning their back on the left. The left is turning its back on the people.
This story is bullshit. Young women have never been more leftwing.
The far-right provides a vision. (It’s a crappy rEtUrn tO tHE pASt type of vision but at least it promises to make life better for the average person)
The modern far-left fails to provide any coherent vision beyond “equality” but how is equality on its own going to make my life better? Equality without prosperity is pointless.
If only we could have more leaders like Denmarks Mette Frederiksen. She’s leading a left-wing bloc of political parties, but still has a very firm stand on immigration.
Right now alot of countries are stuck between woke idealists who refuse to see mass immigration as anything but a strength and right wing Russian puppets only interested in self gain.
One major issue is that liberal policies are seen as left policies by young ppl, they do not even know anymore what “left” actually means. which is just another US import.
Garbage from US is creeping in.
This is what happens when the left cares more about Palestine & immigrants than about their own country & nation. The left is truly out of touch with society these days, and unfortunately, the far right has filled the gap, and now we are seeing the consequences.
IMO, some gender politics and ideas have played a role, especially in driving away young men
If you think the left should adopt racist migration policies and police-state border control policies, you are wrong.
If you think that the left should focus on workers’ rights, democratic control over the economy and equality, you are right.
But hey most leftists are all for this it’s just that the mainstream media refuse to cover that and a lot of would-be leftist political parties gatekeep their base so all you ever see is culture wars bs.
The left needs to start selling a better future. It needs to propose us a future to dream for.
All the left can promise nowadays is for things to not get worse. Which is good, I don’t want things to get worse. But mostly I want them to get a whole lot better.
“The left” You mean the green neolibs guilt tripping their voters into tightening their belts to “save the environment”, while housing prices keep growing astronomically?
And even if they are focusing on economic issues, they think “being right” is enough, they don’t need to explain anything to the voter.
And having a likeable charismatic leader? Blasphemy.