Political Gambling
The Basics of Political Betting As you know, the category of “political betting” covers a broad range of unique wager types and events. RealClearPolitics - Betting Odds - 2020 U.S.
It can be difficult to discuss politics with others. These discussions can escalate to shouting matches where both sides are calling the other side ignorant …and sometimes, much worse.
Well, we have good news for you. You’re in a safe space now. In this guide, we’re going to discuss politics, specifically betting on politics. But we’re not going to judge you or call you names.
In fact, we’re going to help you. If you’re interested in trying to make real money from political gambling, we have everything you need. Including a list of the best political betting sites.
Rank | DE Gambling Site | Exclusive Bonus | Get Started | |
---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | Betway Sports | Up To€150 | Visit Site | Visit Site |
#2 | 22Bet Sports | 100% Up To€122 | Visit Site | Visit Site |
#3 | Spin Sports | 100% Up To€200 | Visit Site | Visit Site |
#4 | 10Bet Sports | 100% Up To€50 | Visit Site | Visit Site |
#5 | Guts Sports | 100% Up To€50 | Visit Site | Visit Site |
Using the top sites to bet on politics online is important. If you get this step right, you’re already on a good path. But, there’s more to learn, especially if you’re new to political betting.
You also need to know the types of political bets you can make, and for how to make them profitable. You’re going to learn all this and more in this extensive politics betting guide.
Many political betting websites are average. A small percentage of them are shady. And even a tinier percentage of them are considered the best.
Be honest with yourself. Could you find one of the best political betting sites on your own …and without spending a lot of your time and money?
Most people can’t, and most people can’t pull this off without accidentally joining a shady site determined to steal your bankroll. They don’t have the experience.
But we do. We’re in the trenches every day, testing, reviewing, and rating online sportsbooks and other real money gambling sites. We have been for more than ten years.
Our point? If you want to save yourself time, money, and the frustration of creating and closing several accounts before you find the right site for you, join one of the online politics betting sites we endorse instead.
How to Bet on Politics
Many online sportsbooks and bookmakers offer political betting markets these days. You just need to know where to look and the types of wagers to look for.
The first part’s easy — find the political, entertainment, or novelty betting tab and you’ll find the site’s options for gambling on politics.
We cover the second part in the following three sections. You’ll get an idea of how to bet on political events that the sites cover, the types of politics wagers you can make, and a few examples of what to look for.
If it’s a political event held in a developed country, chances are, you can bet on it. Here’s a list of the most common markets.
- US politics
- UK politics
- Australian politics
- European politics
Here are some of the major political events you can bet on.
- The next German chancellor
- Next UK Labour leader
- Prime Minister elections
- Impeachments
You can also bet on political races of various other types, as well as specific parties or the outcome of events at the state level. Here are a few examples of markets you can bet on.
- Iowa caucus winner
- Democratic nominee
- Republican nominee
- If a Republican or Democrat will win the election
If you love politics, and you love betting, you’re going to be a kid in a candy store. Politics is one of the most robust betting markets sportsbooks offer. All you need is three or four accounts with top political betting sites and you’ll be all set!
The following list is the most common types of political bets you can expect to find online.
- Moneyline
- Bet on a specific outcome, such as win or lose or yes or no. For example, you can bet on whether Donald Trump will win the 2020 presidential election.
- Futures
- Make a bet on an outcome that you think will occur in the future. These bets are offered and made weeks, months, and sometimes, even years in advance.
- Props
- These are unique, odd, and entertaining bets. These are tougher bets to make money from because there’s not much data or trends for you to use. One of the oddest political prop bets we’ve seen is the option to bet on the size of Donald Trump’s privates.
- Over/unders
- This bet focuses on a specific number. You’re betting on whether you think the outcome will be higher or lower than that number. For example, maybe you can bet on whether you think the Republican nominee will get more or less than 270 electoral votes.
- Point spread
- You’re betting on a range. As long as you’re within that range, give or take a few points, you’ll win the bet. For example, you might bet that Trump wins 50% of US states’ electoral votes, give or take a couple. Otherwise, the bet loses.
Examples of Political Betting Lines and Markets
The following are some examples of the types of political markets you can bet on and types of real money wagers you can make.
- Donald Trump (Rep) -167
- Bernie Sanders (Dem) +500
- Michael Bloomberg (Ind) +500
- Joe Biden (Dem) +2000
- Pete Buttigieg (Dem) +2500
- Amy Klobuchar (Dem) +5000
- Elizabeth Warren (Dem) +6600
- Hillary Clinton (Dem) +6600
- Mike Pence (Rep) +10000
- Michelle Obama (Dem) +10000
- Nikki Haley (Rep) +10000
- Tulsi Gabbard (Dem) +20000
- Sadiq Khan 1.18
- Rory Stewart 7.00
- Siobhan Benita 15.00
- Heidi Alexander 21.00
- Shaun Bailey 21.00
- Amber Rudd 34.00
- Justine Greening 34.00
- David Lammy 51.00
What Country Will Join Iran and Declare War Against the US?
- North Korea -120
- Palestine +200
- Yemen +300
- Libya +500
- Russia +1000
- Pakistan +1000
- Finland +1500
- Italy +1500
This is a drop in the bucket compared to all the types of markets and wagers you can make at political gambling websites. The variety of bets is just one of the many reasons why you should bet on politics online.
Politics are often boring. It feels like a chore to stay updated on candidates, new laws and initiatives, and current events.
But online political betting changes that. Put a little money on who you think will become the next president or prime minister and, suddenly, you start to look forward to all that research.
This is one of many reasons why we like to bet on politics online for real money. Here are a few others.
- Variety
- You have access to markets and betting options that you don’t have access to online, especially if you have an account at more than one of the best political betting sites.
- Compare odds
- It’s much easier to compare political betting odds online. Open a number of sites and you’ll know who has the best odds for “Will a Republican or Democrat win the next election?” in a matter of minutes.
- Mobile betting
- You can bet on politics from anywhere in the world so long as it’s legal and you have internet access.
- Research
- It’s never been easier than it is today to research politics. There are plenty of reputable political data and trend sites online.
- Promotions
- Online political betting sites offer promotions that you’ll never find offline, such as deposit bonuses, rebates, and free bets.
- Ridiculous props
- Where else can you bet on the size of Donald Trump’s package, or whether the public will find out about an alleged romance between Melania and her secret boyfriend?
- Politics betting often unavailable offline
- Many brick and mortar bookmakers do not offer political betting (because of local laws), so online political betting is often your only option.
Those are just a few of our favorite reasons to gamble on politics online.
Learning about your government, officials, candidates, etc. might not be your favorite thing to do. Heck, you might not even vote. But don’t let your dislike for politics get in the way of betting on it.
Politics betting is a lot of fun. There’s money in it if you pay attention and are willing to do the research. There’s always something to bet on too, as the subject is discussed and voted on throughout the year.
So, try betting on political outcomes and see what you think. And make sure to bet on politics online so you can take advantage of all the money and perks not available offline.
Ranking the Top Political Betting Sites
You’ll notice that we recommend a list of the best sites for betting on politics. But we don’t endorse these sites lightly.
No, every site must tick the following boxes before we’ll endorse them for any category.
- Gambling license
- Banking options
- Fair terms and conditions
- Reasonable banking limits, processing times, and fees
- Mobile compatible software or downloadable app
- Positive reputation
- Secure website
We spend hours finding and confirming this information. And we do it because it tells us whether the gambling site is safe, secure, convenient, and easy to use.
Do you want to join a political betting site that can’t tick those boxes? We don’t either. And we don’t stop there. The process above only ensures the site is safe and secure site for bettors. It doesn’t mean it’s a good choice for online political betting.
To ensure that, we check each site for the following details.
- Betting coverage – Does the site only offer US markets, or can you bet on the politics taking place in other countries too, such as Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and so on?
- Betting options – Does the bookmaker offer lots of different bets? Can you make outrights, futures, and prop bets?
- Betting odds – Are the bookmaker’s political betting odds consistently fair or do we often find that they’re always second or third best compared to other sites?
- Betting features – Does the site offer the option to cash out early? Do they offer political picks and tips?
- Betting limits – Bookmakers usually have lower limits for betting politics. We try to find and recommend the sites with the largest limits.
The sites that do the best across the board make it to our shortlist. We sort our shortlist from best to worst, then list them on pages like this for you to choose from.
Of course, when we say “worst,” keep in mind that these sites beat out dozens of other betting sites we’ve reviewed. So, really, they’re one of the best real money gambling sites you can join, especially if you want to bet on politics online.
Politics are volatile. There’s a lot out of your control, such as scandals, poor debate performances, ridiculous speeches, even more ridiculous candidates, and more.
This can make it tough to make profitable political wagers. The good news is that there are decades of data and trends you use to make educated bets. And if you know your Constitution, and can read between the lines, that will help you make smarter bets, too.
The following are a few of our favorite political betting tips to help you get started.
1Pay Attention to Scandals
This is tricky because scandals don’t always work against someone. A good example is President Trump and all the scandals that surfaced before he won the 2016 presidential election.
But scandals can work against candidates. Just look at Hillary Clinton. A couple of weeks before Election Day 2016, with Hillary leading the polls, former FBI Director James Comey announced on Twitter that they were going to reinvestigate the email server case.
This was awful timing. It likely played a role in Clinton losing the election. And while she was cleared of all charges before and after this announcement, this scandal bit her in the backside.
Another example is President Ford. He pardoned Richard Nixon a few weeks after Nixon resigned due to the Watergate Scandal. Many people hated this decision. This decision cost Ford the reelection in 1976.
So, pay attention to scandals and how people feel about them. They can have a massive impact on who wins or loses at the polls.
Another thing you can do is research poll data. This information tells you a president’s approval rating, as well as predictions for who they think will win various elections.
One site we like for poll and rating data is FiveThirtyEight.com. They get their data from several pollsters, weigh it, and give you averages.
You can see historical data, too. Here’s one example of Trump’s (dis)approval ratings. And here’s another showing you who’s likely to win the 2020 Democratic primaries.
Another good site to use is Politico.com. They made several predictions about who they think will win the presidency, White House, House, and more.
There are several good sites to use. Do a Google search but make sure the site gets their data from reliable sources and aren’t pulling numbers and predictions out of thin air.
3Has the Candidate Made Any Mistakes?
Another clue you can use is if any candidate has made any (obvious) mistakes. There are a couple of recent examples we can draw from.
One is Hillary Clinton. She hardly visited key states like Pennsylvania and Michigan during the 2016 election. Many experts believe this played a role in her losing the presidency.
In her book What Happened, Clinton disagrees. She said that the margin to win those states was thin and that Comey’s tweet about her emails is what caused her to lose.
Who knows for sure? What we do know is that Clinton lost many states that have voted blue in recent elections to Trump, who visited these states more than she did during that election cycle.
Another example is Elizabeth Warren. Many experts believe she made a few mistakes during key debates during the 2020 election cycle. For example, she didn’t have a good explanation for how to fund her Medicare for All idea (one of her big selling points). And that while her ideas and experience are good, she didn’t do a good job of selling them.
This is a tougher tip to use if you’re not a political junkie. The good news is that you can read about these mistakes from people who are. Just make sure you read reliable sources and that many experts agree on the same thing before you use that intel to make your bets.
4US Political Parties Usually Serve Only Two Terms
Hillary Clinton had a lot working against her when she ran for president in 2016. Some of those things were outside her control.
Political Betting Market
For example, history shows that America doesn’t like to have a political party in office for more than two terms. They get tired of one side’s policies, so they swap them out for the other party.
Barack Obama was a Democratic president for two terms. So, Hillary Clinton didn’t stand a chance of winning based on that fact alone.
Here’s how you can use this information.
Say President Trump wins his 2020 reelection bid and is president until 2024. It’s a safe bet that a Democrat candidate will win the 2024 election.
In fact, we’d make this (futures) bet as soon as bookmakers post their odds.
5Don’t Let Your Political Opinions or Beliefs Get in the Way
Most of us have an opinion about politics, but you’ll want to ignore your opinion if you plan to bet on it. You need to ignore your biases and focus strictly on the facts.
Get this tip wrong and nothing else will help you.
For example, many people loathe Donald Trump. But even if you wanted someone else to win the 2020 presidential election, the fact is that Trump’s the favorite to win.
You shouldn’t bet for him to lose unless it’s a profitable decision. In fact, that’s a good general rule for betting on anything that people often forget.
Anyway, those are a few tips to help you make more money from your political bets. If you follow our political betting blog, you’ll find lots of other helpful information and advice, too.
Here’s a selection of our most recent posts.
How do you bet on political outcomes online?
Just follow these steps:
- Choose a sportsbook to join. The sites we endorse are a good place to start.
- Make a deposit. Most sportsbooks accept Visa and Mastercard, though Bitcoin and e-wallets are also good options.
- Find the political betting markets under the politics or specials tab.
- Add your selection to your betting slip and enter how much you want to wager.
- Submit your bet.
That’s all there is to betting on the politics online.
Odds are, you’re fine, but you can read about online gambling laws and regulations if you’re concerned.
You can also ask a lawyer or your local authorities.
Can you bet on UK politics?
You sure can. We’ve seen odds for the following outcomes:
- Next Labour Leader
- Next Liberal Democrat Leader
- Next Conservative Leader
- Year of Next General Election
- Exit Dates
- General Election Most Seats
That’s just from one politics betting website, too. You’ll have a few more options if you have an account with two or three.
Yes, and you should for two or three major reasons.
- More political betting options
- Not all politics betting sites cover the same markets, so having more than one account gives you the largest selection of real money political wagers to choose from.
- Price shop
- Sometimes, you can find large pricing discrepancies between even the best political betting sites. The fewer accounts you have, the more you risk overpaying or winning less than you should.
- Spread your risk
- Having your money spread out ensures that if something ever happens at one sportsbook, you won’t lose your entire bankroll.
There are other reasons, but we think you get the point. It makes sense to have more than one account, so long as your bankroll is large enough.
Can I claim a deposit bonus for online political betting?
Most online betting sites offer welcome deposit bonuses and reload bonuses for their new and existing customers. You shouldn’t have a problem finding one.
Whether or not you can use it for politics betting is up to the betting site. You’ll need to read their terms and conditions to be sure. That said, we’ve not seen one site that says you can’t.
Politics aren’t fun to talk about for most people. You always feel like you’re one sentence or point away from starting a civil war.
Political Gambling Odds
The consensus then is that you shouldn’t discuss politics, especially at gatherings. There’s just too much room for error. But if you love politics and want to have more fun with it, what do you do?
Political Gambling Odds
We recommend betting on politics. Take your knowledge and make some money with it. It couldn’t be any easier than it is today to get started either.
Join one our recommended politics betting sites and you can bet on a variety of markets such as the US presidential election, UK mayoral election, Brexit, impeachments, and more.
The first step is to join a top site. The ones we endorse are a great place to start because they’re safe, secure, and offer loads of betting options and promotions.
Political Gambling Websites
You won’t find a better group of political betting sites to join. You just won’t.