US election: Donald Trump's odds of beating Kamala Harris surge on betting platforms

Donald Trump’s odds of winning the US election over Kamala Harris have surged on betting platforms as election officials continue to count ballots.

Polymarket, a betting platform that only deals in cryptocurrency, has placed the former president at a 94.7 per cent chance of winning, while Harris’ odds are at just 5.4 per cent.

In a matter of four hours, Trump went from leading Polymarket’s forecast by less than 10 per cent to a whopping 90 per cent.

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Polymarket users have spent a total of $3.2 billion betting on who will win the election.

Trump is a long way ahead on other betting platforms, with London-based site Betfair predicting he has a 97.7 per cent chance of winning.

Popular Australian betting platform Sportsbet is paying $17 for a Harris win, while Trump’s odds are at $1.003.

Trump’s surge comes as major news outlet The New York Times claimed Trump had a 90 per cent chance of winning, despite other analysts saying it was far too early to make the call. The same tracker reportedly predicted a 95 per cent chance of a Clinton victory in 2016. And we all know how that ended.

Trump has won two of the seven crucial swing states — North Carolina and Georgia — and is also ahead in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Arizona and Wisconsin. Vote counting continues in Nevada.