Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris is inching closer toward victory over the Republican nominee former President Donald Trump. The race to claim the position as the leader of the free world has always been layered with dizzying nuances. But the tit-for-tat fight to decide who will sit at the big desk in the Oval Office this year is like watching two UFC fighters in a Las Vegas ring attempting to knock each other out cold.
The Fierce Competition and Public Reaction
The blow-for-blow calls coming out of the mouths of Harris and Trump are juicy, making for a big pour of hot sauce on every bite that Americans are digging their teeth into as we try to decide which is the best candidate for the job. While there is no clear projected winner to be a total knockout as of this month, there is a buzz in the air of betting odds.
The Election as a Sporting Event: A Polarizing Race
With such a polarizing race in 2024, it should surprise no one that these things are easily comparable to a gladiator fighting, which, of course, stimulates the human mind to compare it to a sporting event. It certainly is shaping up to carry the same energy of a brutal NFL game with heavy hits on the gridiron or an NBA match-off that has the ball fiercely bouncing back and forth on the court. It gives off vibes of fans crossing their fingers for good luck in anticipation of a loud buzzer going off any second to complete the game. Yet, for all the titillating emotions of this presidential campaign, it is not a wagering moment. You can vote, but you cannot bet in the 50 states.
Legal Implications of Betting on Politics
It is illegal to place wagers in America on politics since it is considered to play a heavy hand in ethical challenges and the potential for swaying the minds of voters. Some may still want to take monetary bets through international methods in locations such as establishments set up in England and Canada, but it can be risky to put funds into a system that may never produce a return even if you get the Oval Office pick right. Prominent offshore betting through international connections does seem very sly like a James Bond movie, but you could just end up falling into a big money pit rather than speeding away in a fast car like the Hollywood hero.
The Internet and Election Odds: Public Predictions
But all these regulations and roadblocks are not going to stop the internet from belting out election odds. You can always trust the online crowd to get on their computer or hop on social media on their phone to project a winning ticket. They base numbers on polls and exit surveys. Systems like Kalshi are used, which is a regulated exchange and prediction market that permits you to trade on the outcome of real-world events.
Topics Likely to Shape the Debates
Users here might be able to do things like calculate and wager what candidate will list off for topics during their timed speeches during debates. Issues bound to come up when Trump and Harris take a podium next month on the world stage are sure to include such matters as inflation, immigration, unemployment, Obamacare, student loans, climate change, and AI usage concerns, to name a few. A poll is taken in a survey with a yes or no if the topic will come up. It is then the percentages are tallied and presented to the individual wishing to make an intelligent and informed bet.
Betting on Debate Scenarios: Lighthearted Speculations
This type of shared information could even be charted next to such yes or no scenarios of how many people believe the candidates will go over their allotted speaking time; will they shake hands at the end of the debate; or even as far-fetched as if a candidate will take off their jacket during a heated part of the drawl.
Campaign Rallies and Public Perception
Thousands of voters have been attending campaign rallies where Harris is in the spotlight. Many are interpreting this growing momentum in crowd size to be a sign that Trump is getting closer to not taking a second term in the Oval Office. Establishing residency once again at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is starting to not look so cut and dry ever since President Joe Biden’s reelection bid efforts were ditched after insistence from his direct party and surrounding community told him it was time to fold. Democrats are now full-heartedly and enthusiastically backing Harris as the first Black woman and first person of Asian descent to become a major party’s nominee for president.
The Trump-Vance Ticket: Challenges and Criticism
This is all while Trump’s pick for vice president is starting to be viewed as having a seriously bad trajectory. The Republican ticket with J.D. Vance on it is proving to be very little more than fodder for late-night television show hosts to poke fun at or social media to blow up and accuse of wrongdoing. By this point in the election series, everyone is far aware of how a reference to a sofa and a bad acknowledgment of single women who have cats is bringing down the power of the Trump campaign ticket.
Current Betting Odds and Predictions
As of mid-August, Harris is now outperforming Trump as a favorite to beat the former president across multiple betting sites. As reported by Newsweek, comparison website Odds Checker showed the vice president has better odds of winning in November according to international bookmakers Bet 365, Sky Bet, and William Hill, which are offering odds of 4/5 (55.5 percent) on the vice president against 1/1 (50 percent) for Trump.
Next President 2024 USA Odds
| Candidate | Best Odds | Implied Probability |
|---|---|---|
| Kamala Harris | -120 | 54% |
| Donald Trump | +110 | 48% |
What do odds mean if you bet on Harris and Trump? The negative odds (-120) for Kamala Harris indicate that she is favored, meaning you would need to bet $120 to win $100. The positive odds (+110) for Donald Trump indicate that he is the underdog, meaning a $100 bet would win you $110.
International Betting Markets Favor Harris
“PaddyPower and Betfair both had odds of 8/11 (57.9 percent) on a Harris victory, ahead of Trump on 1/1 (50 percent),” Newsweek wrote. “Betting website PredictIt was selling $1 shares in Harris winning in November for 57¢ each, versus 45¢ for Trump as of August 12. For each share purchased, the better gets $1 back if they guess the correct winner but loses their stake if they are wrong.” Currently, no legal sportsbooks allow you to bet on political events, such as Elections.
Harris’s Campaign Momentum in Battleground States
Additionally, USA Today is also projecting research that is taking on the same pattern. The publication points out that the odds on the crypto-trading platform Polymarket are swinging in favor of Harris, who just wrapped up a four-day tour in major battleground states. Her and running mate Tim Walz just hit the trail hard across America in boisterous rallies in Wisconsin, Michigan, Arizona, and Nevada. There were plans to also go to Georgia and North Carolina before Tropical Storm Debby put a stop to a visit, which now could leave these regions vulnerable to more lingering voter interpretation in the coming weeks.
The Growing Divide and International Interest
All of this is just fueling the rivalry between Democrats and Republicans even further. The contributing factors widening the gap in the great divide between parties grow bigger while the betting stats increase in the attraction factor. While one cannot bet in America, it doesn’t mean that other international methods for wagering are faltering. If anything, the fascination is drawing millions of Google searches and interest in social media hashtags on what might happen if your money was on the line for the biggest election in recent memory.
The Uncertainty of the Presidential Race
The race is still nowhere near over. Politicians are always going to churn out some sort of messy situation as an audience watches or squeeze out a juicy tidbit in front of a camera shooting for worldwide news headlines. With still about 8 weeks until election day in November, truly anything and everything is up in the air when it comes to the war between Trump versus Harris.
A Gamble for the Future
Consider it all just more fuel for fire for potential international wagers on limited platforms or at least a good old-fashioned online Google hunt for what the oddsmaker might be setting. The next holder to the key of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue has a lot to gamble on with democracy at stake.
