Trump biggest betting favorite over Harris after flurry of wagers
Updated October 18, 2024 - 12:04 pm
Former President Donald Trump is now the biggest favorite to date over Vice President Kamala Harris in election betting odds after a flurry of wagers.
Trump replaced Harris as a slight -115 favorite on Oct. 7 before increasing his edge to -130 on Oct. 11. On Friday, Trump had climbed as high as a -173 favorite at Pinnacle, where Harris is a +148 underdog.
Trump is -160 and Harris +140 at BetOnline, which reported wagers this week on the former President of $77,500 (-155), $73,564 (-155) and $68,000 (-160), among others.
“We got peppered with a handful of 50K Trump bets,” BetOnline brand manager Dave Mason said. “The odds have been volatile over the past couple of months based on polling and the overall market changes, but this move is largely based on the action we’ve received of late.”
BetOnline.ag, an offshore sportsbook that is not regulated in the U.S., is reporting that its election betting handle, or amount of money wagered, is already more than $10 million. It projects that the election handle will eclipse the handle from Super Bowl 58 at Allegiant Stadium in February.
“This volume is ridiculous,” Mason posted on X (@davemasonbol). “We are going to shatter 2020 Election handle.”
Mason also posted bets on Harris of $50,000 each at +150 and +135, and of $49,928 at +140, among others.
He replied Friday to a commenter on X that “if you believe the Dems will steal the Election, you can get them at +140. $100 bet=$140 profit or… $50,000 max bet=$70,000 profit.”
A negative number represents how much a bettor must wager to win $100, meaning a gambler must bet $160 to win $100 on Trump to win the election at the current odds at BetOnline.
A positive number represents how much a bettor would win on a $100 wager, meaning a gambler would win $140 on a $100 bet on Harris to win the election.
At DraftKings sportsbook in Ontario, Canada, Trump is a -165 favorite and Harris a +135 underdog.
At electionbettingodds.com, which averages live odds from FTX.com, Betfair.com, PredictIt.org, Smarkets.com and Polymarket.com, Trump has a 57.0 percent chance to win the election, which equates to -133. Harris has a 42.1 percent chance, or +138.
Betting on politics isn’t permitted at U.S. sportsbooks.
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X.