Thousands line up to bet on the outcomes of elections every year. Thanks to online sportsbooks, it has never been easier to do so.
Betting on presidential and political candidates is similar to betting on your favourite sports teams. You need to research each competitor, look at their past performances, and place informed wagers based on this information.
Here’s what you need to know to do so successfully.
Types of Election Betting Odds
Straight Bets and Futures
Arguably the simplest way to bet on elections is to place a straight bet on who will win outright. Out of a whole pool of candidates, you’ll select one in the hopes that your choice will prove correct.
The most unlikely winners, or underdogs, will often offer the biggest payouts if they do manage to surprise everyone with a victory.
You can also wager on the futures of political candidates, along with which party will take the majority vote.
Party Lines
Another common way to wager on politics is to bet on the party line – so, for example, on the Republicans or Democrats winning the American elections.
These future bets work similarly to moneylines. There will be a favourite and an underdog involved. Party odds are usually specified by experts’ opinions, so as with any futures bet, it will benefit you to do your research.
Prop Bets
Popular prop bets involving https://australianbettingsites.org/election/ markets include who will win the first debate, or who will perform better among a specific demographic of voters.
You can also wager on popular votes vs electoral votes, the gender of the winning candidate, and even the primaries held in each state or province.
Over/Under Bets
State primary odds open at the beginning of an election year. They allow you to monitor the campaigns of all running parties and play your stakes right up until the election takes place.
You could even place over/under electoral votes on each individual candidate and whether they will achieve more or less than a pre-set number of votes.
Election Bet Odds Formats
Any wager you choose to place will be displayed in three possible odds formats. Examples of these formats include:
- American – +120 or -200
- Decimal: 2.5
- Fractional: 1/3
Most reliable online bookmakers will do the maths for you and display how much you stand to win from your bet, but it does pay to read up on these odds formats so that you always know what you’re dealing with.
Handicapping and Margins of Victory
Bettors are usually offered popular and electoral betting pools in which they can wager on how many votes a candidate will win by and the percentage difference between the pools.
These kinds of bets can add great excitement as the election day approaches, encouraging you to watch state by state results on live television or online. Electoral vote handicapping will create a spread of votes to bet on, levelling the playing field just as a point spread would.
Be sure to register with a trusted online sportsbook to enjoy the best betting odds and markets for your political election betting pursuits.