US: 30% of Republicans support bombing Agrabah, the home of Aladdin

Nearly a third of Grand Old Party (GOP) voters across the US would support air strikes on the fictional sultanate of Agrabah. In a survey conducted by Public Policy Polling (PPP), 30% of Republicans and 19% of Democrats would support bombing the scene in Disney's 1992 movie, Aladdin.

Agrabah – which temporarily fell under the oppressive regime of Jafar before he imprisoned himself in a lamp – did get some support from 13% of Republican voters, who said they would not support its bombardment, while 57% claimed to have no opinion on the matter. In contrast, 36% of Democratic primary voters said they would oppose military intervention. One possible theory for opposing such action in the so-called city of "mystery" and "enchantment" is its notorious reputation for constantly being "One Jump Ahead" and with US troops still in Afghanistan, overall support for a war that could last well over 1,001 (Arabian) Nights could be thin.

Polling firm PPP is known for asking Republicans loaded questions in its surveys. The experiment also shows a wider problem with polling, with research from past studies showing that a substantial number of people will offer opinions on fictitious topics in the context of a survey interview.

PPP, which is based in North Carolina, correctly predicted all 50 states in the 2012 US presidential election. It has previously conducted polls on conspiracy theories, such as whether aliens exist and whether the moon landing was staged.