Betting on Politics

Online gambling sites are taking bets on who will win the different political races in the upcoming election. There are some interesting possibilities as right now the odds vary greatly from site to site and the only way all this money will have gone to waste is if the eventual winner isn't on any of the lists. Someone has to win. Someone will make money from their victory. How much? Depends on where ya go and if ya pick right.


Bodog has presidential betting odds which can be seen here. There is hype surrounding the news that Ron Paul has moved from obscurity to 17/1 odds of winning the Republican nomination. That still places him behind non-contenders such as Mike Huckabee and John McCain in the Bodog betting lines. Is the smart money on Ron Paul at this point in time? I would like to think so, but I am better at picking college basketball winners than political races. The online betting industry taken a liking to the Texan over his lack of fondness for Internet regulation.


Ron Paul -- “I believe strongly that the Internet should not be regulated by the federal government and believes even more strongly that people should be free to engage in the activities they wish, as long as they are willing to take responsibility for their actions.”


Some online betting news websites have been following the presidential races more closely than others. A good example of the gambling industry's interest in the 2008 Presidential Election is the people at Gambling911. They have had great coverage of the race for the White House. Their odds for Ron Paul and the other candidates are different than the odds at Bodog. Apparently Sportbook has him at 8/1 to go all the way, very interesting to say the least although not entirely surprising given his impressive fundraising totals for last quarter and money raised so far this quarter.


As you can see there is a discrepancy between gambling sites on the odds to win the next election. If you are going to bet on the race be sure to find a website with a good reputation and the best odds for your chosen candidate. Remember that if you put money down on Ron Paul to win the Republican nomination and he ends up taking the White House on the Unity '08 ticket then you won't win any money, just freedom, maybe.