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Ian Bruce

In this guide, we showcase the best political betting sites currently available in the UK. We’ll tell you where you can bet, what you can bet on, and the promotional offers you can take advantage of. Whether you want to bet on the next UK Prime Minister, by-elections, or elections taking place overseas, here’s all you need to know.

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[17117,17096,17111,17114,17132,17123,17362,17093,17135,17087]
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Bet £10 Get £30 In Free Bets

04/04/24

Bet £10 Get £30 In Free Bets

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#ad. 18+. Play Safe. 3x £10 free bets. Free bets expire after 30 days. New customers signing up through mobile or tablet device only. Minimum £10 stake on odds of 1/2 (1.5) or greater on sportsbook (excluding Virtual markets). Further terms apply. begambleaware.org

Bet £10 & Get £30 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365

02/04/24

Bet £10 & Get £30 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365

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Registration required. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of qualifying bets. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply.

Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Football Bet Builders

05/01/24

Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Football Bet Builders

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New Customer offer. Place a min £10 bet on the Sportsbook on odds of min 1/2 (1.5), get £30 in Free Bets. Rewards valid for 30 days. SMS verification required. Only deposits via cards will qualify. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly

Bet £20 and get it back as cash if it loses

26/03/24

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Place your FIRST bet on any Sportsbook market and if it loses we will refund your stake in CASH. Max refund for this offer is €/£20. Only deposits made using cards will qualify for this promotion. T&Cs apply

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05/04/24

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We’ve enhanced our UK Sportsbook Welcome Offer. Get 50% Back as a Free Bet up to £35 (normally £25) plus 10 Free Spins! A minimum of 3 bets at odds of evens (2.00) or greater is required to qualify for the max free bet, which is based on 50% back of first day losses. Even if your account is up, a single £10 Bet at the minimum odds, secures a £5 Free Bet & 10 Free Spins. UK 18+T&C’s

Bet £50 & Get £25 in Free Bets + 10 Free Spins

15/04/24

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New customers only, aged 18+. Min deposit £10. Place a £50 bet on any sport at at odds of Evens (2.0) or greater to qualify for three free bets on settlement: £10 on Football, £10 on Greyhound and £5 on Virtual Sports, plus 10 Free Spins on Reel King. Free Bet & Spins expire in 7 days. Additional T&Cs apply. Please bet responsibly.

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09/01/24

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T&Cs: 18+ New customers only. Opt in, bet £10  on any football market at minimum 1/1 odds. No cash out. Get £40 in Free Bets on selected events. Free Bets expire in 7 days. Debit card / Apple Pay payments only. T&Cs apply, see below. begambleaware.org | Please gamble responsibly

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22/04/24

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New customers only. Register with SUMMER50 between 31/05/24 – 14/07/24. First bet £10+ at Evens (2.0)+ on Sports within 7 days to get 3 x £10 in Sports Free Bets & 2 x £10 in Acca Free Bets within 10 hours of settlement. 7-day expiry. Eligibility & payment exclusions apply. Full T&Cs apply.

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New bettors; Code SPORT; Wager deposit & bonus 8x; Max qualifying bet stake=initial bonus; Valid 60 days; Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply; T&C apply; 18+

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New cust only. 7 days to opt in by placing a £10 qualifying bet at 1/1 (2.0) odds or greater to receive 6x Free Bets: 1 x £10 horse racing, 2 x £10 Bet Builder, 2 x £10 Acca and 1 x £10 football. 7 day expiry. Exclusions apply. Stake not returned. 18+. T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org.

Political Betting Odds

Shopping around for the best possible odds is always a good thing to do because better odds mean bigger potential profits if your bets are successful. If you’re unsure about odds and how they work, you might find it useful to take a look at Betting Odds Explained. In the table below, you can see the betting odds for the winner of the 2024 US Presidential Election at three of our top sites. While the available odds are broadly very similar, you’ll see that different bookies can sometimes give you slightly different things to bet on:

US Presidential Election 2024 Betting Odds

William Hill bet365 Paddy Power
Donald Trump 8/15 8/15 1/2
Joe Biden 4/1 4/1 4/1
Kamala Harris 15/2 6/1 15/2
Michelle Obama 16/1 16/1 18/1
Gavin Newsom 16/1 20/1 20/1
25/1 bar 35/1 bar 25/1 bar

Odds correct as of 09:30, 09/07/24

Top 10 Political Betting Sites

Most online bookmakers in the UK will let you bet on politics, but some are better than others. Here are ten of the best political betting sites, according to our team of expert reviewers:

  1. William Hill – Huge range of political betting markets for the UK, US and more.
  2. Bet365 – Superb for constituency betting, with plenty of international coverage too.
  3. Betfair – Fixed odds and exchange betting on politics in the UK and around the world.
  4. Paddy Power – Impressive array of global political betting markets and Power Prices.
  5. QuinnBet – Makes it easy to navigate dozens of political betting markets.
  6. Fitzdares – Mostly UK and US-related markets, with domestic politics emphasised.
  7. BetVictor – A great site for betting on UK politics and US Presidential elections.
  8. Betfred – Mostly UK and US political betting markets, including Next Leader odds.
  9. 10bet – Banded markets for General Election Total Seats, US elections and more.
  10. BetMGM – Bet on elections around the world, including the UK, the US and Australia.

Five of the Best Sites for Betting on Politics

You can’t go wrong with any of the political betting sites we’ve just listed, but the top five are our cream of the crop. Why do we say that? Well, let’s take a closer look at each of the top five, and everything will soon become crystal clear.

1. William Hill – Huge range of political betting markets at home and abroad.

We’ve picked William Hill as our best overall political betting website because it has a huge range of markets. These cover not only UK elections and US presidential elections but also US senate elections, state betting, EU parliamentary elections, Irish elections, and more.

William Hill Political Betting

William Hill political betting markets for the UK are displayed first, which is convenient. These markets allow you to bet on which party will win the most seats in the next General Election, the next permanent party leader, the General Election Turnout, and the total number of party seats that will be lost, to name just a few.

Betting on overseas politics is also as comprehensive as you could want it to be. In short, William Hill is a great place to start for access to the widest range of markets.

2. Bet365 – The Best Political Betting Website for Constituency Betting

Bet365 politics coverage is just as good as at William Hill, but this site is particularly good for anyone who wants to bet on which party will win a certain constituency in a UK General Election. The constituencies are grouped alphabetically, so it’s easy to find whatever market you might be looking for, from Aberafan Maesteg to York Outer.

Bet365 Political Betting

In addition to giving you access to a wide range of international political betting markets, Bet365 also offers political Bet Boost deals. These enhance the odds that you’d normally get for a specific outcome.

For example, if an outcome would normally pay odds of 10/1 or 12/1, a Bet Boost might give you enhanced odds of 11/1 or 14/1 instead. This is great news for anyone who is interested in value betting.

3. Betfair – Both Fixed Odds and Exchange Betting on Global Political Events

One of the things that makes Betfair stand out from most online betting sites is the fact that it lets you bet in both fixed odds and exchange markets. That gives you two approaches to betting on politics, and there are plenty of markets for both of them. Expect full coverage of the UK political scene, as well as elections in the US, Ireland, Canada and Europe.

Betfair Political Betting

As well as being able to bet on scheduled elections, Betfair also has markets for political events that haven’t yet been officialy announced. For example, you can already bet on the Next Scottish Independence Referendum Result, even though there’s no guarantee that another one will take place. If you’re a fan of such speculative betting markets, Betfair politics coverage won’t disappoint.

4. Paddy Power – Impressive Array of Markets and Power Prices

Visit the Paddy Power UK politics page and one of the first things you’ll notice is that it has Power Prices available. Those are more generous prices than you would normally expect about certain outcomes, and while you won’t get them on all political betting markets, you can expect them for big events such as the UK General Election.

Paddy Power Political Betting

Talking of markets, the range here is impressive. For the UK alone, you can get odds on the next Prime Minister and bet on a variety of majority and minority government outcomes in a General Election, as well as the party with the most seats. You can also bet on party leaders, lost seats, the vote percentage and more. There are plenty of constituency markets, too. Throw in similarly extensive markets for Europe, the US, Canada, and Ireland, and Paddy has politics covered in great style.

5. QuinnBet – Easy to Navigate Dozens of Political Betting Markets

At QuinnBet, you can bet on politics in the UK, the US and Ireland. And the great thing is that you can view the available betting markets by country. Simply visit the Politics page, select the country you’re interested in and the related markets will be listed. You can then click the arrow symbol to open any of those markets and add selections directly to your betslip.

QuinnBet Political Betting

While the range of markets at Quinnbet isn’t quite as broad as at some other sites, it is perfectly sufficient for anyone who wants to bet on the big events in politics. There are no politics-specific betting offers generally available, but that could obviously change for major elections. Whether or not that happens, the betting odds for politics here are already competitive.

Best Political Betting Sites Compared

To help you choose the best political betting website for you, here’s a table that shows how our top 10 bookmakers compare in several key areas.

Bookmaker UK Elections UK Constituency US Presidential Global Elections
William Hill
Bet365
Betfair
Paddy Power
QuinnBet
Fitzdares
BetVictor
Betfred
10bet
BetMGM

What Makes a Top Political Betting Site?

Assessing a political betting site isn’t very different from assessing a sports betting site, so we follow our general approach, as explained in How We Rate Bookmakers. However, there are a few things that we look for that are specific to political gambling. Here are the main ones:

Political Betting Market Provision

While bettors in this country are most likely to be interested in markets related to UK politics betting, we want to see breadth as well as depth. For political betting in the UK, we want leadership markets, General Election odds, and preferably the ability to bet on constituency results and by-elections. In addition, we also want sites to offer markets for US politics betting and events taking place in Europe, Australia and beyond.

Political Betting Promotions

Not all political betting sites offer deals specifically aimed at political bettors, but some do. Paddy Power, for example, has Power Prices available for certain key events. Similarly, bet365 has political Bet Boosts running from time to time. When a site makes such specific offers available to political gambling fans, we take notice and point it out.

Competitive Odds

Getting good political odds can make all the difference between making a profit and a loss. For that reason, we look to ensure that the odds available from a bookmaker are competitive with others in the industry. Whether we’re looking at UK political betting odds or at the prices on offer for the next US president, we want to see fair prices. If there are any odds-enhancing offers available as well, so much the better.

Best Political Betting Offers

In the UK, political betting isn’t nearly as popular as sports betting. That being the case, it makes sense that most online bookmakers tend to focus on giving their customers sports offers. A few, however, also make a deal or two specifically available to those who bet on politics. Here are some examples:

Bet365 Bet Boosts

logo bet365 1At Bet365, Bet Boosts are available for a number of sports. They are also offered to enhance political odds from time to time. For example, if a bet in a Total Seats market would normally give you odds of 2/1 or 9/4, a Bet Boost offer might give you odds of 9/4 or 5/2 instead. That means you’ll make a bigger profit if your bet succeeds.

Power Prices at Paddy Power

paddy powerPower Prices at Paddy Power are much the same as Bet Boosts at bet365, and they work in the same way. The bookmaker offers odds about a specific outcome – such as a political party winning a General Election by less than 50 seats – that are larger than they would normally be. Again, if your bet wins, the enhanced odds offered mean you’ll receive a larger return.

William Hill #YourOdds

William Hill 1This is technically a feature at William Hill rather than an offer, but it’s well worth mentioning. It allows you to request odds for any bet you can think of, including those relating to politics, by tweeting the details to @WilliamHill with the hashtag #YourOdds. The William Hill political betting team will then check that your proposal can be accepted. If it can (and they do their best to accommodate their customers), they will tweet back the odds they’ll give you for the wager.

Political Betting in 2024: An Overview

2024 is set to be a particularly big year for fans of political betting. In July, the British public will be voting in a UK General Election to determine which party will lead them for the next four years. And then, in November, our cousins across the pond will be voting to determine who will be the next President of the United States. There are also plenty of elections taking place elsewhere. Here’s a table of key events and when they will happen.

Political Event Date Location
European Parliament Elections 6-9 June, 2024 All EU countries
Irish Local Elections 7 June, 2024 Ireland
Belgian Federal Election 9 June, 2024 Belgium
Iranian Presidential Election 28 June, 2024 Iran
UK General Election 4 July, 2024 United Kingdom
Rwandan General Election 15 July, 2024 Rwanda
Australian Northern General Election 24 August, 2024 Australia
German State Elections 1 and 22 September, 2024 Germany
Algerian Presidential Election 7 September, 2024 Algeria
Russian Regional Elections 8 September, 2024 Russia
Austrian Legislative Election 29 September, 2024 Austria
Brazilian Municipal Election 6 October, 2024 Brazil
Mozambique General Election 9 October, 2024 Mozambique
Australian Capital General Election 19 October, 2024 Australia
Canadian General Elections Before the end of October, 2024 Canada
US Presidential Election 5 November, 2024 United States of America
Political Betting

Popular Political Betting Markets

When you come to actually place a bet at political betting sites, you’ll find that you’ll have a range of markers to choose from. The options available will depend largely on the bookmaker you use and the type of event you are betting on, but here are the most common markets you can expect to encounter:

Most Seats

This market requires you to bet on which political party will win the most seats in an election. In the UK, your options will normally be Labour, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Green, or Any Other Party.

Government After Next Election

Here in the UK, it is possible to have majority governments, minority governments or coalition governments, depending on how many seats are won. You can therefore bet that the next government will be a Labour Majority, Conservative Majority, Labour Minority, Conservative/Lib-Dem Coalition, and so on.

Overall Majority

These markets let you bet on whether you think there will be an overall majority. In one type of market, there are just options: Yes or No. In another type, you can bet on a Labour Majority, a Conservative Majority, or No Overall Majority.

Prime Minister After Election

Your task here is to name the individual who will be the Prime Minister after the election result. Normally this will be the current leader of the party that eventually wins, but it’s theoretically possible for a party leader to lose their own seat in an election (take a look at this Institute for Government page for more on that topic). Check out our Prime Minister betting page for odds and more details about this betting market.

Turnout Percentage

Not everyone who is eligible to vote in an election will actually do so. The percentage that do show up to vote is referred to as the “turnout”. Here you bet on the turnout percentage, and at most online betting sites, you will be able to choose from a handful of predetermined ranges. For example, you might be able to bet on Up to 55.00%, 55.00 to 59.99%, and so on.

Constituency Betting

There are 650 parliamentary constituencies in the UK, and with some bookmakers, you can bet on the election outcome in any one of them. Simply pick the party that you think will receive the most votes in the constituency, and if you are right, your bet will win, regardless of what happens in other constituencies or the General Election as a whole.

Next Permanent Party Leader

This betting market allows you to bet on who you think will become the next leader of a particular political party. There doesn’t need to be a party leadership contest running for these markets to be made available, and the names offered as options don’t even need to have expressed any desire to run for leader. That makes them rather speculative, but they could be of interest to those of you with views about the medium to long term.

Presidential Election Winner

Many bookmakers also let you bet on presidential elections in countries that have them. The most common one is the US Presidential Election, but similar ones take place in Argentina, Iran and plenty of other countries. This market lets you bet on the candidate you think will win such an election, and if your selection wins, then so will your wager.

Gender of Next Presidential Election Winner

Another market for presidential elections allows you to bet on the gender of the winner. For obvious reasons, this market will only be available when both male and female candidates are in the running. Your options here will be Male or Female, and the odds available will reflect the number of candidates of each gender as well as their respective chances of winning.

Winning Party

This market – which you’ll almost always find available for US and other presidential elections – requires you to select the political party that you think will get the most votes. In the US, your options will be Republican, Democrat or Other. Elections in other countries will obviously feature a different selection of parties for you to choose from.

Political Betting Tips

There are no big secrets to winning at political betting, just as there are none for winning at sports betting. However, here are a few tips that might help you to improve your chances:

  1. Consider National Sentiment

    First, consider how the nation feels about the party that’s already in power. Has that party endeared itself to the people or at least done enough to be given a second chance at taking the reins? Or has the party disgruntled the country and been in power for long enough that people feel like they are desperately in need of a change? Combine your assessment of general sentiment with opinion polls and betting odds, and if the three agree, you could have a good idea of how the election result will go.
  2. Think Locally for Constituency Betting

    When you are betting on constituency results, you should consider not only local sentiment but also political tradition. Some areas have a long history of being a Labour or Conservative stronghold, and it’s usually a lot harder for the opposition to win these areas even if the broader national sentiment is on their side.
  3. Be Politically Objective

    As far as possible, try to keep your own political views out of the picture. If you’re a die-hard Labour, Conservative, or Lib Dem supporter, you can probably think of a million reasons why that party should win. Unfortunately, the outcome of an election is determined by what everyone else thinks. Try to be objective and see things from a neutral position rather than simply betting according to what you want to happen.

Political Betting on Mobile Devices

Things can get pretty hectic in the weeks and days leading up to a big vote, so being able to make bets quickly in light of the latest piece of breaking news is always handy. Fortunately, you can bet on politics on mobile devices just as easily as you can on your desktop PC at home or at work. Visit our Betting Apps page, and you’ll see that many of the best betting sites offer dedicated apps for iOS and Android devices. Download one to your smartphone or tablet, and you’ll be able to make bets as and when you need to.

The Final Count

There are winners and losers in every election, and the same can be said about betting on politics. Now that you’ve seen where you can make a political bet, you can either put your money where your vote is or back the opposing view for a consolation payout should your preferred party or leader lose the election itself. However you proceed, election betting is sure to make the excessive media coverage a lot more interesting than it would be otherwise!

FAQs

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Ian Bruce

Ian Bruce joined Safest Betting Sites in 2024 as Senior Sports Editor to oversee the quality and usefulness of its gambling content. He originally developed an interest in betting after landing a winning Yankee on his first attempt. He then spent years figuring out how to replicate that success. Along the way, he became one of the UK’s leading writers on the topic of betting and gaming. Ian’s career has now spanned more than three decades, and his enthusiasm for systematic and responsible betting hasn’t waned one bit. However, his preferred approach to winning these days is Dutching, for the simple reason that “It’s a lot easier than landing Yankees.”