It's anyone's guess who former President Trump might choose as his running mate in 2024, and the bets are flying.
Former President Trump appears at a campaign rally at the Trump National Doral Golf Club in Doral, Florida, on Tuesday. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images / Getty Images)
As of Friday, Ohio Sen. JD Vance was the clear favorite to become the Republicans' vice presidential nominee, followed by North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum across three betting markets — but there is plenty of chance that Trump could pick a wild card.
Sen. J. D. Vance, R-Ohio, addresses the conservative Turning Point People's Convention at Huntington Place in Detroit on June 16. (Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Traders on prediction platform PolyMarket give Vance a 45% chance of becoming Trump pick and a 26% shot for Burgum. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio sits in third place in the running with 10%, followed by South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, both of whom have odds of 8%.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum participates in the first debate of the GOP primary season hosted by FOX News at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee on Aug. 23, 2023. (Win McNamee/Getty Images / Getty Images)
On PredictIt, Vance was seen as having a 44% chance to Burgum's 18% and Rubio's 12% odds. BetUS.com put Vance at 44%, as well, but Burgum had better odds on that site at 30% implied probability, while Rubio was at 12.5%.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, looks on during a hearing in Washington, D.C., on March 8, 2023. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Tim Williams, director of public relations for BetUS, said that while Vance and Burgum are favored in terms of the odds, they are not necessarily favored in terms of the betting action the market is seeing.
Williams explained that despite his long 90-to-1 odds, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has seen a notable number of wagers as Trump’s potential VP pick, and so has Scott, who would pay out at 18-to-1.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks to members of the media and site workers at the Permian Deep Rock Oil Company site in Midland, Texas, on Sept. 20, 2023. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images / Getty Images)
But perhaps most notable so far, Williams noted, is the unusual number of wagers BetUS has received this week on Kevin Faulconer, a not-so-well-known former mayor of San Diego who currently sits at 100-to-1 odds.
"We received a significant number of wagers over the last 72 hours on Faulconer, so much so that oddsmakers temporarily suspended betting on Mr. Faulconer while they investigated the possible reason for the sudden interest in the former San Diego mayor," Williams told FOX Business. "And we’re not just talking San Diego here, wagers were coming in from New York, Florida, and even Washington D.C."
California Recall Election Republican candidate Kevin Faulconer speaks about his women's empowerment plan at a news conference in Los Angeles on Aug. 30, 2021. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Williams noted that Faulconer was the GOP mayor of a very liberal city and is considered a moderate Republican — fiscally conservative and socially liberal. Years ago, he spoke about his vision for the "new California Republican."
BetUS's oddsmakers were unable to explain the unusual wagering activity for Faulconer to become Trump's VP pick, so wagering on the candidate has been re-enabled.
"Whether or not the betting action we have seen on Faulconer is simply wishful thinking by bettors wanting to see a more socially moderate Republican VP in the White House, or someone knows something we don’t is anyone’s guess," Williams concluded.