Brits bet million on 2012 U.S. election
Gamblers in the United Kingdom can bet on U.S. presidential elections, but Americans cannot. That will not change by the next White House run in 2016. Last week, Nevada lawmakers turned thumbs-down on a proposal to allow betting on federal elections in the Silver State.
State Senator Tick Segerblom, a Las Vegas Democrat, was behind the effort to let Nevada sports books to take parimutuel wagers on elections for president, U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, the Associated Press reported. “We bet on everything,” Segerblom said.
But a Reno Republican said betting on elections is out of line. “Frankly, I think that something as import as elections, as opposed to games, should not be the subject of wagering in our state,” said Senator Greg Brower.
According to CBS News, Segerblom’s idea has a historic if not exactly legal precedent. In the early 1900s, Americans gathered outdoors in New York City to make their wagers. On Wall Street, it was called the curb exchange. In 1916, an estimated $160 million was bet on the election that Woodrow Wilson won.
In Great Britain, about $2 million was bet on the last election in one gaming establishment, Ladbrokes. They’re already handicapping 2016.
“I can see we have Hillary Clinton as a 6-to-4 favorite, and then there is a massive gap to Marco Rubio and Chris Christie, who are both in there, 12 to 1. We have George Clooney at 200 to 1,” Alex Donohue, spokesperson for Ladbrokes, told CBS.
Income from political gambling in Nevada could hit an estimated $50 million, generating $2 million in taxes. Segerblom said not doing it here is “crazy and stupid, because its tax money that we should keep here as opposed to sending it overseas.”
Some critics have argued that voters might not bother going to the polls if the odds show their candidate is a long shot. But Sin City oddsmaker Jimmy Vaccaro says the opposite would be true. “Let me tell you something. If you could bet on the election, you’re gonna vote,” Vaccaro said. “Why not? It’s the first time you can actually have a say in the outcome of your money.”
