Political Betting & Election Odds
Welcome to political betting at BoyleSports. Politics betting continues to grow in popularity following events like Brexit in the UK and the recent US Presidential Elections, and you’ll find comprehensive markets and competitive odds with us. Read on to discover key politics betting markets, how to understand the odds and some tips to help inform your betting.
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Political Odds
Just as with our sports betting markets, all our politics betting odds are based on the predicted probability of an event happening. They are written as fractional odds, like 10/1, but you can also switch them to decimal odds if that’s your preferred format. Political odds represent the bookmaker’s prediction that a certain event will happen. The shorter odds tend to represent the favourite, but remember that politics is often unpredictable.
Let’s look at a couple of examples of fractional odds.
A specific candidate to be the next Prime Minister: 2/1 - This means if you win the bet, you’d get twice your money back. If you placed a successful £10 bet and your chosen candidate is Prime Minister after the next General Election, you’d win £20. Plus your original stake would be returned to you, for a total of £30.
Conservatives to win the next general election: 5/1 - This means you’d get five times your money back if you win the bet. With a successful £10 bet, you’d win £50. You’d get a total of £60 as your stake is returned to you.
Main Political Betting Markets
With politics betting, there are a range of betting markets to select from. At BoyleSports, you can bet on politics in the UK, Ireland and across the pond in the US.
UK Politics
Some of our main UK political betting markets include:
1. General Election Results: Betting on which party will win the most seats, form the next government, or win an outright majority.
2. Next Prime Minister: Bet on who’ll be the next Prime Minister after a General Election.
3. Party Leadership Races: Have your say on who’ll become the next leader of their political party.
4. By-Elections & Local Elections: Predicting the outcome of specific constituencies in by-elections and local elections.
5. Referendums & Policy Decisions: Bet on outcomes of referendums (like Brexit) or whether specific policies will be implemented.
Irish Politics
At BoyleSports you can bet on who will be the Taoiseach after the next election, as well as which party gets the most seats. Plus, you’ll find betting markets on who will be the next Minster for Foreign Affairs.
US Politics
With our US political betting markets, you can bet on which party will occupy the White House, the Presidential Nominees, which way certain states will vote, and the vote in the all-important Swing States. You can even bet on the US Presidential Debate winner.
Join our BoyleSports bettors and have your say with our political betting markets.
How do Elections Influence Betting
When it comes to election time, public opinion can shift dramatically – every single day of the week. And this can also influence the odds, with our political odds fluctuating in line with political events and other real-world happenings.
Major televised debates can quickly place one candidate as a front-runner for many people, and can do damage to another candidate’s campaign. You’ll see this reflected in the odds. Things like scandals or perceived poor performance in office can also cause a candidate’s odds to drift.
Once a new Prime Minister is in place, this can also open up new betting markets on their cabinet appointments for example. The same can happen when a Minister faces the sack and a cabinet reshuffle looks like it might be on the cards.
Tips on Politics Betting
When it comes to political betting, it helps to:
1. Do Your Research: There’s plenty of data on offer to help inform your betting. Check reputable sources like YouGov and Ipsos in the UK and keep up-to-date with expert political analysis. Good options for US betting include FiveThirtyEight and CNN.
2. Follow Trends and Events: Regular data points like party approval ratings, voter sentiment, and key economic indicators can all help with your betting.
3. Follow the Betting Markets: The polls aren’t always accurate. Sometimes political betting markets can predict outcomes more accurately than the polls. Keep your eye on the odds and understand how they change in the lead-up to a political event.
4. Time it Right: You might often get better odds when betting early, but things can shift quickly when it comes to politics. Waiting until closer to an event gives more clarity on where things might go, but the odds may be shorter. As soon as you think you can call the result of a political event, place your bet early to maximise the potential odds.
Check out our dedicated politics blog for more politics tips and predictions.
Political Betting Jargon Buster
It can help to understand some key political terms and what these mean for betting:
1. Popular Vote vs. Electoral College: In US politics, the popular vote is the aggregate of all votes from across all States in America. But this doesn’t decide the winner of the Presidential Election. Instead Electoral College decides this. In US politics, each state or district has a number of electors, totalling up to 538. For a candidate to win the election, they need at least 270 electoral votes.
2. State Betting: This is where you bet on the outcomes of each individual state in the US, rather than the outcome of the election.
3. Seats: In the UK, there are 650 constituencies, each with a corresponding seat in parliament. For a government to win a majority in the General Election, a party needs at least 326 seats.
4. Hung Parliament: This happens when no political party has enough seats to secure an overall majority in the House of Commons.
Bet on Politics at BoyleSports
With our wide selection of politics betting markets and political odds, BoyleSports is the home of politics betting.
New to BoyleSports? Join now and start betting on politics.
Responsible Political Betting
We place responsible gambling as our number one priority at BoyleSports. You’ll find a selection of safer gambling resources on our betting platform, to help you set time limits and manage your bankroll, as well as take a break from gambling.
For further information on responsible gambling, visit BeGambleAware.org and GamCare.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is politics betting?
Politics betting involves betting on the outcome of political elections and political events. At BoyleSports, you can bet on politics in the UK, Ireland and the US, covering general elections, presidential elections, local elections, and more.
Which political elections can I bet on?
You can bet on a range of political elections at BoyleSports. This includes the General Election and Local Elections in the UK. You’ll find odds on the US Presidential Election. And you can bet on the Irish General Election and the candidate to become the next Taoiseach.
