Politics in New Zealand, and the world-alike, can be exciting, awe-inspiring and spellbinding, but politics can also be infuriating, exasperating and down-right enraging. Either way, politics can be very hard to ignore, especially considering the global implications as good or bad political climate can have far-reaching consequences.
The online bookmaker market is a highly competitive industry, and as such many online sportsbooks have now widened their betting market by adding options for political betting. Since politics are so unavoidable, punters are enjoying the better opportunities for predicting the outcome of political events. Unfortunately at this time, Kiwi punters will have to look towards offshore bookmakers to partake in political betting, as the only authorized bookmaker in the country does not as yet offer wagers in this market.
Political Betting Explained
New Zealand punters will find that political betting works much the same as placing wagers on sporting events, and many offshore bookmakers now offer a wide variety of wagers surrounding political events. Bookmakers who offer this service may either list political bets amongst the sports offered, or have a separate tab entirely amongst the links at the top of the page. Political betting markets are generally divided into country, and the most popular wagers surround the financial Superpowers of the world, and their political happenings.
Getting Started with Political Betting
The best advice for punters in New Zealand wanting to participate in political betting is to know the market. Much like punters would do research surrounding sport teams as well as past handicaps and future odds, political markets should be researched as well. With 24/7 news channels, and online news resources, punters can stay up to date with the latest happenings in other countries, as we are more connected than even before on a global scale.
If Kiwi punters have not as yet signed up to an offshore bookmaker, the process if very simple, and can be completed in a matter of minutes. Select a bookmaker, create an account, and make a deposit. Most bookmakers offer online betting offers, so make sure to read the terms and conditions of these rewards before deciding on a bookmaker. Once setup is complete, find the political betting tabs amongst the options, and take a look at the wide variety of betting markets.
Types of Bets & Odds
The most popular types of political bets will generally crop up around major elections, and one of the most fantastic things about political betting is that wagers can be placed well in advance. Punters will discover wagers on elections up to 4 years in advance, and you may in fact find many highly entertaining wagers available. Wagers range from bets as simple as who will be elected President / Prime Minister amongst 2 or 3 possible candidates, but many bookmakers offer wagers on special events surrounding a specific presidency, such as when a country will be visited, or whether a full presidential term will be served.
When looking at the odds of political bets, punters must remember that odds are set by the bookmaker according to the likelihood of an event taking place. It isn’t wise to place a wager on an event with odds as immense as 200/1 as this means that the likelihood of this event taking place is very low. Low odds, such as 5/1, should be deciphered as the bookmaker considering the chance of the event taking place as quite high, and as such bets should be placed on odds such as this.