Joe Biden’s decision to select Sen. Kamala Harris of California as his running mate might have hurt the presumptive Democratic nominee’s chances of winning the Nov. 3 election, at least according to some gamblers.

The betting odds for President Trump to win a second term improved in the wake of Harris becoming Biden’s vice president choice.

However, Biden is still a heavy favorite according to the latest election model from FiveThirtyEight, which has Biden winning wining the election 71% of the time.

Biden was a -155 favorite at the online sportsbook BetOnline just before Harris was added to the Democratic ticket, while Trump had +125 odds. In the immediate aftermath of Biden’s announcement, his odds moved to -135. Trump became a +105 underdog.

Placing a $100 bet on Biden at -135 would net a $74.07 profit if Barack Obama’s former vice president wins the election. A bettor who put a $100 wager on Biden when he had -155 odds could make $64.52.

Betting $100 on Trump at +125 would result in a $125 profit if the president is re-elected. Now that his odds are +105, a $100 wager could only net a $105 profit.

Harris had long been the favorite to be named Biden’s vice president. For a brief moment Tuesday when Biden’s announcement was impending, former Obama national security adviser Susan Rice became the betting favorite to become Biden’s running mate.

Meanwhile, the latest election model from FiveThirtyEight suggests that Trump is a significant long shot. In 40,000 simulations, Biden wins the election 71% of the time.

Biden leads Trump by 8.3 points in the national polls, according to FiveThirtyEight, with 50.4% of the votes. Trump is polling at 42.1%. Biden had been up by as much as 9.6 points on July 7.

Biden is projected to win 323 electoral votes compared to Trump’s 215. The former vice president is a slight favorite in swing states such as Florida, Arizona and Wisconsin.

On Election Day 2016, the model gave Hillary Clinton a 71% chance to defeat Trump.

Joe Biden's choice of Kamala Harris for White House running mate puts a black woman on a major US party ticket for the first time
Joe Biden's choice of Kamala Harris for White House running mate puts a black woman on a major US party ticket for the first time AFP / Olivier DOULIERY
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