Harry Potter may stop Trump from becoming US Prez

A recent study conducted at the University of Pennsylvania points out that the fans of Harry Potter have a lower opinion of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

According to a report in The Independent, those who read JK Rowling's Hogwarts creations are more likely to dislike Trump, possibly as a result of the franchise's 'opposition to authoritarianism' and promotion of diversity, tolerance and acceptance.

The study that is due for publication in an election special of PS, Political Science and Politics was conducted on 1142 Americans before and after Trump's campaign in 2014 and 2016 and they were directly asked about him and other controversial issues including gay rights and death penalties.

Diana Mutz, the leader of the study, from the Annenberg School for Communication, found that the more Harry Potter an individual had read, the lower was their opinion on Trump on a scale of 0-100.

"This may seem small but for someone who has read all seven books, the total impact could lower their estimate of Trump by 18 points out of 100," Mutz stated.

"The size of this effect is on par with the impact of party identification on attitudes towards gays and Muslims. Because Trump's political views are widely viewed as opposed to the values espoused in the Harry Potter series, exposure to the Potter series may play an influential role in influencing how Americans respond to Donald Trump," she added.

Mutz's study also provides evidence that our views can be influenced by lessons learned from fiction.

"Perhaps most importantly, these findings raise the hope that Harry Potter can stop the Deathly Donald and make America great again in the eyes of the world, just as Harry did by ridding the wizard world of Voldemort," she concluded.