Former President Donald Trump leads a growing political betting field of Republican hopefuls in what is shaping up to be a historic race for the GOP nomination ahead of the 2024 US Elections. 

Trump became the first Republican to announce his presidential bid in November, a week after the party’s underwhelming performance in the 2022 US Midterm Elections that saw his endorsed candidates suffer significant defeats. 

Fast forward four months, he became the first former president to face criminal charges when District Attorney Alvin Bragg levied a 34-count felony indictment of Trump in a Manhattan criminal court on Tuesday, April, 4, 2023.

A criminally indicted former POTUS seeking a White House comeback is a first in US history. Admittedly, there has never been a more polarizing figure in American politics than Trump. But – remarkably, and against the odds (literally)  –  the ignominy of getting arrested, arraigned, and having your mugshot taken hasn’t marked his political demise – as some pundits would have expected. Instead,  thus far, at least, it’s helped to boost Trump’s odds to win the GOP nomination and the general election with top-rated sportsbooks across in Europe. 

UK bookmaker Ladbrokes has Trump as the odds-on favorite at 8/13 (-163) to get his party’s nomination and at 5/2 (+250) to win the 2024 US Elections – second after sitting President Joe Biden, nosing in front at 7/4 (+175) for re-election on the 2024 Presidential Election odds board.

Political betting is not legal in the United States, but American pundits and new media outlets will often refer to politics odds such as these also known as “novelty odds” or “specials.” Should American operators ever offer these markets, however, they’re bound to be a huge hit with bettors at the sportsbook exchange and on betting apps.

2024 Republican Nominee For President Odds

Odds via 888Sport's UK-facing betting site on Thursday, April 13, 2023 and subject to change.

Trump’s Top Republican Rivals

The road to the White House opened up following the November midterms with Trump holding the shortest position on the political odds board. 

Since then, only Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has held an equally short position in the betting odds, though the would-be challenger is yet to announce a run for the White House in 2024. DeSantis is priced as the next-best bet after Trump at 9/4 (+225) to win the Republican party’s nomination and as the third-best bet at 4/1 to win the 2024 US Presidential race.

After this top tandem but tipped as second-tier candidates are many well-known politicians, including Trump’s former US ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Vice President Mike Pence, to name a few. 

The field of play is far from complete, but now that we know that the first Republican primary debate will take place in August in Milwaukee, with Fox News hosting the much-anticipated event, more players are going to be throwing their caps into the race.

Below, we look at Trump’s top rivals according to the betting odds as they stack up today.

Donald Trump -163

Trump announced his third-consecutive White House bid in November, vowing to make America both “glorious and great again” as he addressed a crowd gathered at his waterfront estate of Mar-a-Lago in Florida. 

The announcement came a week after the fall midterms, in which Trump-endorsed candidates endured a poor showing and the Republican party failed to win back power in both houses.

Firsts and Trump appear to be synonymous. He was the first Republican to enter the race and the first US president in more than a century to lose his re-election bid, only to try again. During his first term in office, he was the first sitting president to be impeached twice. 

Now, he’s the first US president to face criminal charges. Nevertheless, Trump, who pleaded not guilty to all 34 charges after surrendering to authorities in Manhattan, remains the GOP frontrunner as per the betting sites.

In an interview with Fox News’ Tucker Carlson on Wednesday, the ex-president not only vowed to carry on with his campaign, despite his legal woes, but he also questioned his Democratic rival Joe Biden’s ability to run. 

Ron DeSantis +225

DeSantis is the party’s fastest-rising star and is widely considered as the likely heir-apparent to Trump. The 44-year-old governor romped to a landslide victory in last year’s midterms, winning a second term with more than 1.5 million votes – the largest margin of victory in the Florida gubernatorial race in over four decades.

DeSantis is yet to officially throw his cap in the 2024 presidential race. Political pundits don’t expect he’ll do so before May, if at all. 

Nikki Haley +2000

Haley, 51, became the first Republican candidate to take on Trump when she announced her presidential campaign in mid-February. 

The twice-elected governor and former cabinet member is arguably one of the more experienced politicians on the docket. She is seeking to make history by becoming the first Asian-American to win the GOP presidential nomination. 

However, she ruffled some feathers when she called for mandatory competency tests for politicians over 75 – a move that was interpreted as a direct dig at President Biden and former boss, President Trump.

Glenn Youngkin +2500

Glenn Youngkin, 55, came almost out of nowhere as a political novice to win the Virginia gubernatorial race in 2021, defeating a refined Democratic opponent in a state that enjoyed a conspicuous Democratic lean to that point. 

Tim Scott +2800

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott has launched a presidential exploratory committee for a potential 2024 bid. The 57-year-old politician made the announcement on Wednesday via social media, in a tweet accompanied by a video. 

"I will never back down in defense of the conservative values that make America exceptional," Scott tweeted along with a video. 

Scott is the only black Republican serving in the US Senate. If he runs, he will enter a loaded GOP field that already features confirmed candidates Trump, Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (+6600), and businessman Perry Johnson (+20000) and Indian-American tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy (+20000).

NOTE: Betting on politics is not legalized in the U.S. but is heavily bet on in Europe. For more info on political betting in general as well as coverage of the latest news affecting the odds, be sure to check out our guide to betting on politics.