One of the more popular betting markets – and one of the more pressing mainstream questions surrounding the 2020 Presidential election – is exactly whom Joe Biden is going to pick as his running mate on the Democratic ticket.
The presumptive nominee might be waiting to make his selection until after he’s secured the necessary 1991 delegates to guarantee his place on the party ticket, though it’s clear that there is uncertainty about which female Vice President candidate would give Biden the best chance to win.
After Gaffe Joe’s most recent flub on The Breakfast Club where he claimed entitlement to the black vote, the show’s host, Charlemagne tha God, released several statements promoting a woman of color for the post.
On MSNBC’s AM Joy, Joy Reid posed the following scenario to Charlemagne:
“[What] if Joe Biden says, ‘No, I’m picking Amy Klobuchar, she’s my running mate, then what do you do?”
As a response, tha God offered up the response that such a pick would cause “voter depression” in the black community. Further, Charlemagne contends that a black VP is needed in order to “make some real policy commitments to the black community.”
Of course, on the odds boards, a different reality is surfacing, and US Senator Amy Klobuchar (MN) is creeping up into favorite territory for Creepy Joe.
While Kamala Harris is still the favorite (and, by her own actions, is no friend to the black community, as Tulsi Gabbard so deftly pointed out in the second Democratic debate), Klobuchar is now just a few points behind her at most election betting sites.
BetOnline – which takes action from US residents in 49 states – has the race the closest:
2020 Democratic Vice President Odds
- Kamala Harris +200
- Amy Klobuchar +250
- Elizabeth Warren +300
- Michelle Obama +900
- C.Cortez Masto +1200
- Gretchen Whitmer +1200
- Val Demings +1200
- Stacey Abrams +1400
- Hillary Clinton +1800
- Tammy Duckworth +2500
- Tammy Baldwin +6000
- Barack Obama +6600
- Tulsi Gabbard +8000
Until this week, Klobuchar was over 100 points behind Harris, though she’s now closed the gap considerably. And that makes sense, as it’s Klobuchar – more than anyone else on this list – that would give Biden the edge he needs in several Midwestern swing states.
Harris, as a Senator from California, would only serve to deliver Biden her home state, which he’s already won. California hasn’t voted for a Republican Presidential candidate since 1988, and if the purpose of a VP is to give the top of the ticket a boost in battleground states, Harris simply doesn’t have the goods.
Interestingly, Elizabeth Warren – famously not a person of color – is third on the boards at +300, while Barack Obama – who is arguably constitutionally ineligible to be VP – has also made an appearance as the only man on the list.
Some other sites have NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo on their futures boards, but since the COVID-19 nursing home scandal in New York came to light, he’s slipped dramatically, and BetOnline has pulled him off their Vice President boards entirely.
The VP odds aren’t the only interesting developments at online election sportsbooks, either.
At Bovada, there are now electoral odds on most of the swing states, and several new political props have emerged.
Two such props are margin-of-victory lines for the Presidential election, and they work much the same way that they do for big sporting events, like the Super Bowl or NBA Finals.
Whichever party you think will take the White House in November, these political props – if you can nail the numbers – offer much better payouts:
2020 Electoral College Margin Of Victory
- Republican 100-149 +600
- Republican 60-99 +750
- Democratic 60-99 +800
- Democratic 100-149 +800
- Republican 30-59 +1000
- Democratic 30-59 +1000
- Democratic 10-29 +1200
- Democratic 150-209 +1200
- Republican 10-29 +1400
- Democratic 210-279 +1500
- Democratic 280+ +1800
- Republican 280+ +2000
- Republican 0-9 +2000
- Republican 150-209 +2500
- Democratic 1-9 +2500
- Republican 210-279 +3000
2020 Popular Vote Margin Of Victory
- Dems By 1.5% – 3.0% +400
- Dems By 3.0% – 4.5% +475
- Dems By Less Than 1.5% +600
- Dems By 4.5% – 6.0% +700
- GOP By Less Than 1.5% +1000
- Dems By 6.0% – 7.5% +1200
- Dems By 10.5% Or More +1400
- Dems By 7.5% – 9.0% +1600
- GOP By 1.5% – 3.0% +1700
- Dems By 9.0% – 10.5% +1800
- GOP By 3.0% – 4.5% +2400
- GOP By 10.5% Or More +3000
- GOP By 4.5% – 6.0% +4000
- GOP By 9.0% – 10.5% +4500
- GOP By 7.5% – 9.0% +4500
- GOP By 6.0% – 7.5% +4500
Of course, the Republicans are expected – at least by bettors (if not pollsters) – to win the election, with Trump taking a second term in office. However, when it comes to the popular vote, it is expected that the GOP will fall short.
These kinds of props are what you can also expect in several congressional races that would otherwise be foregone conclusions.
Candidates like Nancy Pelosi (CA) or Ilhan Omar (MN) are locks to win their races, and Vegas election sportsbooks likely won’t offer straight bets on those outcomes. However, margin of victory odds should be in play for the most well-known candidates, as that’s something compelling for bettors to wager on.
Right now, there are no individual US House odds or Senate odds posted, but as the November general draws near, you can expect to find plenty of action to whet your whistle – and your bankroll.
Stay tuned, because this election is just getting started!
