TD Mary Lou McDonald, President of Sinn Féin.RollingNews.ie
Political bettors have rushed to back Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald to become the next President of Ireland after she hinted at reconsidering her position on Monday.
Having previously ruled herself out of contention in March, McDonald appeared to change her stance when questioned by reporters, stating: “We are not ruling anything in or out.”
Immediately after these comments, betting aggregator Oddschecker reported a significant surge of interest from punters backing McDonald.
On Monday alone, she accounted for 63% of all bets placed on the Next Irish President market—up from the mere 3.4% share she had received during the previous month.
Before her latest statement, McDonald was rated as a significant outsider at odds of 50/1, placing her behind even UFC star Conor McGregor (33/1) in the betting.
Conor McGregor. (RollingNews.ie)
However, bookmakers have now slashed her odds considerably, making her the joint third favourite at 11/1 alongside former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and former minister Mary Hanafin.
Bertie Ahern. (RollingNews.ie)
Mairead McGuinness is the current betting favourite at odds of 7/4, followed by Catherine Connolly at 6/1, and Bertie Ahern at 11/1.
Mairead McGuinness. (RollingNews.ie)
Sinn Féin are the marginal favourites to win the most seats at the next general election at odds of 5/4, compared to 6/4 for Fianna Fáil.
Current Top 10 in the Next Irish President Betting:
- Mairead McGuinness: 7/4 odds, 36.4% implied probability
- Catherine Connolly: 6/1 odds, 14.3% probability
- Bertie Ahern: 11/1 odds, 8.3% probability
- Mary Lou McDonald: 11/1 odds, 8.3% probability
- Mary Hanafin: 11/1 odds, 8.3% probability
- Heather Humphreys: 14/1 odds, 6.7% probability
- Sean Kelly: 14/1 odds, 6.7% probability
- Mike Ryan: 14/1 odds, 6.7% probability
- Frances Black: 16/1 odds, 5.9% probability
- Adi Roche: 16/1 odds,5.9% probability
Oddschecker’s Leon Blackman reports: “Mary Lou McDonald’s latest comments sparked a betting frenzy on Monday, with political punters quick to back her as a potential presidential candidate.
"Her initial 50/1 odds were quickly snapped up, and bookmakers have now repositioned her as an 11/1 joint third favourite. Incredibly, we saw four times the number of bets backing McDonald on Monday alone compared to the previous two months combined.”