Elizabeth October 18th, 2008

Ireland’s major betting company Paddy Power is so sure that Barack Obama will win the US presidential election next month that it paid out more than 1 million euros ($A2 million) on pro-Obama bets today.

US Presidential hopefuls McCain and Obama may have saved the best till last, but analysts call it a tie favouring Obama.

“We declare this race well and truly over and congratulate all those who backed Obama – your winnings await you,” said a company spokesman, who is also named Paddy Power.

The company explained it was paying out early to reward its customers and acknowledge the inevitable.

Power said the company had been taking “one-way traffic for Obama since the start of the summer”.

The biggest winner: Someone who gambled 100,000 euros ($A206,000) and collected 150,000 ($A310,000).

The most visionary: A 50 euro ($A103) bet placed in 2005 that, because Obama was rated a 50-to-1 no-hoper at the time, paid out 2,550 euros ($A5,275).

Uplifting news care of The Age

Check out this interesting site, If The World Could Vote. The results page is a thing of beauty.

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