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Presidential Election Betting

Political betting has exploded in recent years and most of that action comes in the form of presidential election betting.

Betting on politics generates a lot of betting handle, despite it still not being legal in large swathes of the country.

Most importantly, in regulated sports betting markets, such as Nevada and New Jersey.

Presidential Elections Betting Is A Profitable Market

There is a lot of money to be made when betting presidential elections. The few who saw Donald Trump’s rise to the presidency made a hefty sum if they bet on him early.

He was 50/1 or +5000 in early betting markets before his upset win over Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Betting on president election odds is not only fun if you’re interested in politics, but isn’t necessary. The market offers value whether you’re passionate about politics or not.

The U.S. Presidential Betting Odds Explained

At American-facing sportsbooks, almost all betting sites will use moneyline odds or American odds when presenting their presidential election odds to players.

However, there are other odds types available for bettors which can be easily changed at most sportsbooks.

But, for now, let’s take a look at a US Presidential betting market with moneyline odds.

US Presidential Election 2024 Winning Party

Party	Odds
Democratic Party	+100
Republican Party	-120

This market allows bettors to pick the winning party in the Presidential Election. This is different than betting on which candidate will win, instead, bettors are only choosing the party that takes the White House.

The odds are expressed in moneyline format, with the Republicans at -120, as the favorite. Moneyline odds are simple to understand. They represent the amount you need to bet to win $100. So, in the case of betting on the Republicans, we need to risk $120 to win $100. 

The Democratic Party is the underdog in this market at +100. When the bet is at +100 or “even-money” the amount we have to risk to win $100 is simply 1:1. We need to risk $100 to win $100 on the Democrats.

In this market, there can be no pushes. If you choose the correct party that wins the election, your bet will win, if not, your bet will lose.

Presidential Election Winner Betting Odds

Candidate	Odds
Donald Trump	-140
Joe Biden	+100
Bernie Sanders	+4000
Mike Pence	+5000
Andrew Cuomo	+5000
Hillary Clinton	+6000
Michelle Obama	+20000
Nikki Haley	+20000
Tulsi Gabbard	+50000

Sportsbetting Sportsbook

SportsBetting.ag has become an elite betting site in recent years. Betting options are vast at SportsBetting.ag, and that doesn’t change with politics. Their political betting markets match any other site on this list. 

Bettors can wager $10,000 or more on the outright election winner or political party. Electoral college markets on individual states are also relatively high compared to competitors with a $2,000 max bet.

The Welcome Bonus is their standard bonus that offers 50% Up To $1,000 in free play. They also provide specific bonuses for using cryptocurrencies.

BetOnline Sportsbook

BetOnline is one of the sharpest sportsbooks online and the most popular. The sportsbook has some of the highest limits online for betting politics and a ton of different betting options.

They have competitive odds on nearly every sport globally, massive deposit bonuses, and odds boost promotions. Bettors can wager up to $10,000 on who will win the election and $2,000 or more on individual states.

There are several deposit bonus options, including a 50% Up To $250 bonus and a variety of cryptocurrency or Bitcoin-based bonus offers.

How To Bet On The US Presidential Election Online

1. Sign Up At A Betting Site – This is the easy part, provided you choose a sportsbook that is trusted and safe.
   
   We covered this quite a bit in the above section. Signing up at a sportsbook can be done in a matter of minutes. Most sportsbooks require your real name, address, phone number, and email.
2. Make A Deposit – This can be done in a number of ways. We recommend cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, because they have a 100% success rate and every sportsbook accepts them.
   
   They are also free for deposits and withdrawals. Credit card deposits are also popular.
3. Choose Your Presidential Betting Market – Now that you are familiar with how political odds work, you can choose your bet(s).
   
   From there it’s adding them to your bet slip and finalizing your wagers.
4. Place Your Bets – Once you have added them to bet slip. It’s time to confirm your bets.
   
   Be sure to check the amount wagered and your selection before clicking submit or place bets. Once you place a wager it cannot be undone. Many sites also have one-click confirmations these days, instead of two clicks.

The U.S. Presidential Betting Markets

Like other markets that are non-sports related, the availability of markets is often determined by the oddsmakers at a particular sportsbook.

For political and presidential election betting markets, most online sportsbooks will have the basics, such as which candidate or party will win, but there can be quite a bit more than that.

We will go over the basic markest for betting elections and some of the more exotic examples from betting sites.

Odds To Win The U.S. Presidency

The odds to win the US Presidency will be available at every sportsbook online. These can either be in head-to-head format, across party lines, or a field of different contenders.

This mostly depends on the stage of the election process, whether there are still in the primary phases or candidates have already been selected.

Winning Party Of Presidency

We can look again at our example above, which pits the two parties against each other for the White House:

Party	Odds
Democratic Party	+100
Republican Party	-120

Again, this is a market that decides the winning party and not the candidate who ultimately wins becomes the president.

As it gets closer to election time, a head-to-head market between both candidates is the one that will overtake this one in terms of popularity, but this market will be especially popular in years with two primaries and no incumbent in the White House.

Head-to-Head Winning Candidate

This is another bet type that is sort of self-explanatory. Instead of picking the party to win, you’re choosing the candidate. We’re using the US Presidential Election as an example, but these bet types can pair any two candidates in any country. 

The object here is to pick the winner of the election. Choose correctly and your bet is a winner, pick the wrong and it is graded as a loss. 

Candidate	Odds
Donald Trump	-140
Joe Biden	+120

Betting On The Nominee

Here we have a field of candidates with the goal for bettors to choose the one that ultimately wins the primary and becomes the nominee of the Democratic Party.

These markets can offer plenty of opportunities, as there are a lot of long odds and rapid line movement throughout the election cycle.

These markets can also be available for the vice-president nominee and even cabinet members that the president may appoint.

Also, lots of these wagers include a “field” option, which means your bet wins if anyone besides the names on the list gets the nomination.

U.S. Presidential Election – Democratic Candidate

Nominee	Odds
Joe Biden	-800
Andrew Cuomo	+1200
Hillary Clinton	+1500
Bernie Sander	+2500
Michelle Obama	+3000

Presidential Elections Prop Bets

Aside from outrights, there are a lot of proposition bets available when it comes to presidential election betting lines.

Prop bets are wagers that don’t focus on the main result of a game or event, like which team wins the game, but instead, focus on other factors.

In the case of presidential odds, it’s things like:

Will The Winner Of The U.S. Presidential Election Win The Popular Vote?

Bet	Odds
Yes	-200
No	+170

There are also wagers on how states will turn out for each candidate:

Who Will Win California?

Bet	Odds
Joe Biden	-300
Donald Trump	+250

Presidential election online betting sites may also offer some more exotic bets, where the oddsmakers can run wild with imaginations. Stuff like:

Who Will The President-Elect Congratulate First In His Victory Speech?

Bet	Odds
God	+200
Voters	+700
Campaign Manager	+400
Wife	+300

What To Consider When Betting On The Presidential Elections

One should not forget the basics of sports betting when wagering on political markets and US presidential election Odds.

However, there are some key differences between betting on sports and wagering on political markets. 

Political Markets Aren’t As Efficient As Others

Betting markets offer the most accurate predictions of sports and other events, such as politics. However, it is worth remembering that some markets are not as efficient as others. Political markets are one of those.

In recent years, we’ve seen some wild upsets in politics, with Trump beating Hillary as a pretty substantial underdog. Even the night of the election, Trump could still be had at +200 To +400 at most betting sites, and his odds were much longer before then.

Brexit, in 2016, was another example. Large bets from London’s upper class apparently swayed the odds to remain or stay, while bettors could get +400 on the UK deciding to leave the European Union. Voters decided to leave and underdog bettors cashed.

“Sharp money” isn’t necessarily moving the markets when it comes to politics or presidential election odds. The public has a far greater influence on these numbers when compared to sporting events.

There is a lot of value to be found for that reason.

Check For Political Markets Before Choosing A Sportsbook

Some sportsbooks offer far more political markets than others. If this is a major focus for you as a sports bettor, it’s something to consider before you deposit and accept a bonus offer. 

Viewing markets at a sportsbook is rather easy. You don’t even need to create an account on most occasions. Political or presidential odds should be listed under politics and current events.

If you’re looking for a particular market or lots of offerings on politics, it’s always better to check out the odds and markets first before making a deposit. 

Bettors will find large differences in available markets between online sportsbooks when it comes to betting presidential elections and politics. If you’re full diving into politics, it’s important to have a book that has betting markets on everything.

Use Offshore Sportsbooks

One of the biggest misconceptions bettors have when it comes to political betting is that you can place bets on it at regulated sportsbooks.

People often search for things, such as, “presidential elections odds Vegas”, but legally, sportsbooks in Las Vegas, online or land-based sportsbooks at casinos – cannot take bets on presidential elections. 

Sportsbooks based offshore offer these bets and Americans can legally place bets on these sites. Not only that, but they offer bonus opportunities that can’t be found at legal sportsbooks, online or offline. 

If you want to bet political markets or on presidential elections – online betting sites at offshore sportsbooks are your only option.

Use Multiple Sportsbooks

As mentioned above, this doesn’t mean deposit into any sportsbook you stumble upon online. The reason to use multiple sportsbooks is that it allows you line shop and always get the best price on all of your wagers.

Bettors may find larger differences in betting odds when it comes to political and presidential betting markets.

This will not only allow you to find the best value on your bets but opens up other opportunities, such as arbitrage, which will allow you to lock in a profit using differing prices in the betting market.

Follow Politics

Knowledge of a subject always helps. It’s not going to make you a winning bettor in itself, but if you’re aware of the landscape of politics, especially when it comes to presidential elections, then that is going to help you become a better handicapper.

However, it’s important to leave your personal politics out of it. That can be hard for some people because it’s a subject that many are passionate about.

Regardless of your political stance, remember, you’re looking for value in betting markets and trying to predict winners as accurately as possible.

As crazy it sounds, people may be more blind to their political views than their favorite sports teams. In any case, leave both on the sidelines, in the political betting and traditional betting markets.

Presidential Election Betting Frequently Asked Questions