Written By: Dean Carr | Fact Checked By: Sarah Lunness
As much of a madhouse as the US political system is, it's illegal to bet on politics in the United States. Fortunately for those who like a challenge, there is no such prohibition in the UK. Betting on politics here is commonplace with all of the major online bookmakers offering some degree of political betting. But which of those sites represent the best political betting sites? Read on to find out.
After careful consideration and extensive research, our expert team has concluded that the following brands represent the best sites for betting on politics in the UK.
Best UK Politics Betting Sites
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bet365
bet365 regularly appears on lists of the UK's top betting sites. So it should be no huge surprise to find them heading up this list. The site is user-friendly, they offer a wide array of bets on politics (including action on Australian politics) and their odds stack up well against any of their competitors. To sweeten the pot they offer new customers £30 in Free Bets for an initial qualifying deposit of just £5, as well as an exciting bet365 bonus code to claim.
William Hill
William Hill is one of the oldest betting brands in the UK and has become something of an institution over the past 90 years. They have always provided punters with plenty of ways to bet on UK (and US) politics including some speciality markets like whether certain politicians will switch party affiliation and which country is most likely to be the next to leave the EU. William Hill has an outstanding mobile-only Welcome Offer whereby new customers receive £30 in Free Bets for a £10 qualifying first bet.
Betfred
To the surprise of many Betfred actually have one of the widest selections of political betting markets you will find anywhere. That means they not only offer blanket coverage of UK politics along with some US markets, but they also provide betting opportunities for Australian and Spanish politics. For those who follow developments across the pond, there's a whole section dedicated to Donald Trump and his possible political future. Their Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Bets Welcome Offer is nothing to sneeze at either.
BetVictor
BetVictor are no slouch when it comes to political betting. They offer comprehensive coverage of UK politics, competitive odds and plenty of action on major US races including President and who is likely to pick up the Republican or Democrat nominations. Their Welcome Offer is a bit off the beaten path but useful nonetheless. Make your first bet a £20 bet on football and receive £40 in credits you can use toward any Bet Builder.
Betway
During the political offseason, Betway put most of their focus on other things, like sport. But when we get close to election time in the UK or US they ramp up the number and variety of available markets allowing punters to dive into the shark-infested waters of modern politics. Use the Betway Free Bet club to earn bet credits you can use on political bets, and don’t overlook their Bet £10 Get £10 Welcome Offer.
BetUK
BetUK is new kids on the block when it comes to online bookmakers in the UK, but you’d never know it. They have one of the most comprehensive sportsbooks out there, offer Live Streaming on many events and provide an entire page of markets for those who enjoy political betting. Their Welcome Offer is also first-rate providing £30 in Free Bets for an initial qualifying bet of only £10.
Virgin Bet
Here we're well over a year out from the next scheduled election and Virgin Bet already has dozens of markets available on everything from the Next Labour Party Leader to Most Seats After the Election (Labour 4/5, Conservatives 6/1 and Liberal Democrats currently at 100/1). The Virgin Bet site is extremely user-friendly, although their Bet £10 Get £20 Welcome Offer won’t set the world on fire.
LiveScore Bet
It might seem unusual to find this new betting site on a list of the best UK politics betting sites, yet here they are. They earn this spot by providing betting action on UK, EU, US and Irish politics and by draping their political markets in competitive odds. Get in your bet now on the next country to exit the EU (Italy at 4/1, Greece at 6/1 or Poland at 7/1 as of this writing). Their Bet £10 Get £20 Welcome Offer is neither the best nor the worst out there.
Mr.Play
Last but not least, Mr. Play offers all of the most in-demand betting markets for both UK and US politics, along with better-than-average odds and many ways for punters to handle deposits and withdrawals. There’s also a wealth of existing customer promos to keep you satisfied. And that’s good because their Bet £10 Get £15 Welcome Offer is a bit pedestrian.
How to Join Politics Betting Sites
Joining one of the various politics betting sites is easy as pie and can be done in just a few minutes. The process involved is more or less the same for all major online UK bookmakers and entails the following steps. Read on to learn how to join new betting sites in the UK.
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Decide which of the best political betting sites above to join.
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Click 'join now' to be taken to the bookmaker's registration page.
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An application form will open. Fill in all required fields.
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Choose a username and password.
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If biometric login is available and you want to take advantage of it, choose the option and follow the prompts.
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Accept the site’s Terms & Conditions.
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Tap the “Join Now” button or its equivalent.
That’s it! All you have to do now is fund the account. So choose one of the bookmaker’s approved payment methods and make a deposit. Keep in mind that if you want to take advantage of the bookmaker’s Welcome Offer you will likely need to make your first deposit with a debit card.
How We Choose the Best UK Politics Betting Sites
In order to provide a fair assessment of sites that offer betting on politics we developed a list of factors that help determine a betting site’s quality and then applied it to each of the UK’s many political betting sites. Those factors include:
Bonuses
Everybody loves a bonus, and we are no different. In order for a bookmaker to have one of the best sites for betting politics in the UK they need to provide something a little special for the punter. That means a decent Welcome Offer along with a variety of existing customer promos, such as free bets offers, that reward punters for coming back again and again.
Mobile Compatibility
It wasn’t that long ago that PCs ruled the internet. Any online bookmaker that wanted to be competitive needed to make sure their website loaded properly in all the different web browsers and all the different browser versions. Today, some people still use PCs but the overwhelming majority now access online bookmakers using mobile devices. Therefore if a bookmaker that offered betting on politics did not have both a fast-loading mobile site and a free, downloadable mobile app they wouldn't make our list. Some of the best betting apps in the UK are listed within our best politics betting sites.
Security
It should go without saying that any site where you are conducting financial transactions should have rock-solid security from front door to back. This is one of many reasons you should stick to using only betting sites that are licensed by the UK Gambling Commission. They do an exacting job assessing every aspect of a betting site, including security, before granting a license.
Competitive Odds
Calculating odds on political bets is an inexact science to say the least. If you want to ensure you get the best odds on a particular bet the thing to do is to compare similar bets among the best sites for betting politics. If one site has consistently better odds on a variety of popular markets you might want to consider joining that site.
Range of Markets
Because just about anything can happen in politics the number of potential betting markets is practically limitless. Obviously, though, bookmakers can't account for every possibility so what we want to see is a nice variety of markets, (including all the major ones we cover below), with a sprinkling of unusual or otherwise unexpected markets thrown in for good measure.
Popular Betting Politics Markets
When it comes to the world of politics the number of variables that can affect an election is mind-numbing. A popular politician needs only utter a single misguided phrase to see their political fortunes come crashing down. With that in mind, these are the most popular markets for betting politics.
UK Prime Minister
When it comes to politics betting sites in the UK take more action on the potential next PM than any other political market. The race almost always comes down to a contest between the most prominent opposition leader and the most popular member of the current PM’s cabinet. Be wary about placing bets on the UK Prime Minister too far out, however, because if the current PM reshuffles his or her cabinet the whole picture can change overnight.
US President
The nature of the US government and the political process there always favours a 1-on-1, Republican Vs Democrat contest for President. But on occasion, 3rd party candidates can play a role in determining the final outcome. The last 3rd party candidate of any significance was Ross Perot in 1992, who won nearly 20% of the popular vote.
Perot’s presence in the campaign pulled votes from the incumbent George HW Bush and enabled Bill Clinton to win with only 43% of the popular vote. Other noteworthy 3rd party candidates include John Anderson in 1980 and George Wallace in 1968. For the record, it's looking increasingly likely there will be a 3rd party candidate in 2024.
Next UK Party Leader
All the top political betting sites take action on who punters believe will be the next leader of the Conservative, Labour and other political parties. This type of action is ongoing even though changes may be years out.
Overall Majority
Action on the Overall Majority market typically doesn't heat up until the weeks prior to a general election. The outcome can be influenced by a variety of factors, but if we're talking about an early election then the reason for calling that poll has to be the overriding factor affecting punter’s wagers.
Year of Next Election
General elections must be held within 5 years of the day the current parliament first met. But unlike the US where the 4-year Presidential election cycle is etched in stone, snap elections in the UK are not uncommon. The short-lived Fixed Term Parliaments Act which attempted to establish a regular 5-year election cycle was repealed in 2022.
Most Seats
Whoever wins a majority of seats in the next Parliament will have the ability to enact their agenda with little muss or fuss. As of this writing (after the result of the May 2023 local elections) the best political betting sites are all favouring Labour to regain a majority of seats in the next general election.
Government After Next Election
Labour’s recent momentum at the local level suggests to many bookmakers that they could be next to form a government, although a lot could change between now and the next mandated general election in January 2025.
How to Place Bets on Politics
Placing a bet at any of the best sites for betting politics is not always a straightforward process, so we will take you through it step by step. The following process may not apply to every UK bookmaker that offers political betting, but it's fairly representative of most of the sites on our list of best political betting sites.
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Navigate to the bookmaker’s homepage or open their mobile app.
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Tap on the “sport” tab.
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Scroll down the list of available sports until you see the “politics” tab. (Yes, politics is categorized as a sport on most betting sites.)
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Tap the politics tab.
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This will open a page dedicated to the bookmaker’s political betting markets.
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Select a market (Next PM, Date of Next General Elections etc).
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Add the selection to your betting slip.
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Choose an amount for your wager.
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Tap “place bet” or equivalent button.
Politics Betting Odds
Politics betting odds can be affected by any number of factors including current events (terrorist incidents, foreign wars, recession), scandals <cough> BoJo <cough>, unfavourable polling results and more. When setting odds for politics, betting sites take all of these factors into consideration as well as historical voting trends, a politician’s personal life, their age, their record when standing for election and more.
Why Bet on Politics?
Election campaigns are often referred to as horse races and it is easy to see why. Candidates often break strong out of the gate and roar to an early lead. Somewhere along the way, they stumble as an unforeseen scandal arises and the pack catches up to them.
Heading down the homestretch a longshot emerges from that pack, riding a wave of momentum and winds up surprising the pundits by crossing the line first. If you bet on that longshot way back at the start of the race you stand to enjoy a hefty payday. But beyond the payoff, the uncertainty and excitement surrounding a political race can be substantial.
What to do if you have a gambling problem
We understand that gambling can be fun, but it's important to gamble responsibly. If you're struggling with a gambling problem, please don't hesitate to ask for help. There are people who can help you get on the road to recovery.
Here are some resources that can help you:
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National Gambling Helpline: 0808 8020 133
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GamCare: https://www.gamcare.org.uk/
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GambleAware: https://www.begambleaware.org/
Best Sites for Betting On Politics FAQs
What are the best betting sites for Politics?
Visit this article to be taken to the best sites for political betting, here we provide information and new welcome bonuses to use with your betting experience. Read though and find which one works in your favour online and make the most out of your bet.
Is it legal to bet on Politics in the UK?
Yes, betting on politics in the UK is perfectly legal. That is in stark contrast to the US, where gambling on politics is strictly forbidden in all 50 states, even after a federal ban on gambling in general was lifted in 2018. Why? Because politicians in the US fear that if too much money is wagered on a particular race it could affect the way people vote. The theory goes that if large numbers of people think they are about to lose their bet they could vote for someone they otherwise wouldn’t just to protect their stake.
What are the best bets on Politics?
Some of the most popular political bets in the UK are Next PM, Most Seats in the Next General Election, Year of Next General Election, Type of Government After Next General Election, and Outrights like Current PM Exit Date and Next Labour Leader.
Can I use my mobile to bet on Politics?
Of course, you may use your smartphone to place a political wager. All of the best political betting sites have modern mobile apps that can be downloaded for free from Google Play, the App Store, and the bookmaker's website. It simply takes a minute to download and install, and it has all the features found on the bookmaker's desktop and mobile platforms, including the ability to wager on UK politics.
Can I use more than one gambling site to bet on Politics?
Yes, you may wager on politics using a variety of gambling websites. You will need to open an account with each bookmaker you wish to bet with if you plan to use multiple websites for political betting. You can, of course, behave anyway you choose. However, we do urge you to carefully assess whether maintaining an excessive number of accounts with online bookmakers aligns with safe gaming practices.
