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Harris vs Pence Vice-Presidential Debate Odds and Best Bets

David Golokhov

by David Golokhov in Politics News

Updated Oct 6, 2020 · 5:45 PM PDT

Kamala Harris speaking on stage
Kamala Harris is set to debate Mike Pence on Wednesday, and there is a clear favorite in the odds to spout more lies. Photo by Gage Skidmore (flickr).
  • The 2020 United States Vice Presidential Debate will take place on Wednesday, October 7, at 9:00 PM ET
  • The debate will be held at Kingsbury Hall in Salt Lake City, Utah
  • A number of prop bets have been posted on what Kamala Harris and Mike Pence will say and do tomorrow night.

The first debate in the United States Presidential election cycle was complete chaos with endless interrupting and very little productive discussion. On Wednesday, Oct. 7th, Vice President Mike Pence will take part in a seated debate with Democratic VP candidate Kamala Harris in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Here’s hoping this round is more civil than the first.

The table below shows the prop  available for tomorrow’s VP debate, followed by best bets for what is bound to be interesting theatre, one way or another.

Harris vs Pence Vice-Presidential Debate Odds

Prop Odds
How many times will Harris say “lie/lied/liar”? Over 1.5 (-250)
Under 1.5 (+170)
Prop Odds
Which candidate will lie first (per NYT fact-checker)? Pence (-250)
Harris (+170)
Prop Odds
Which candidate will say “coronavirus” more times? Harris (-120)
Pence (OFF)
Prop Odds
Will either candidate wear a mask at the debate table? No (-1500)
Yes (+600)
Prop Odds
Will either candidate stand up from the table during the debate? No (-2000)
Yes (+700)
Prop Odds
Will either candidate test positive for COVID-19 by Oct. 13th? No (-175)
Yes (+135)

Odds as of Oct 6th, 2020.

Over On Times Harris Says “Lie/Lied/Liar”

In a typical setup, calling someone a liar directly is not the friendliest tone to take but given the nature of this election, you can expect Senator Kamala Harris to use this term at least two times. We need to get at least two for the over and she’ll have plenty of excuses to use it.

To start, Harris is likely to call President Donald Trump a liar or indicate that he’s lied about many things. Of course, this debate is really a proxy for who is the better option – Trump or Biden – and that’s where the attention will be turned. Secondly, Vice President Mike Pence is the head of the Coronavirus Task Force, so Harris could tag him as a liar with the virus/pandemic.

Harris tends to be very direct when she debates and she’s not going to sugarcoat anything. That’s why betting over looks good with this prop.

Pick: Over 1.5 (-250)

Will Either Candidate Stand Up from the Table During the Debate?

Taking a look at this prop, the juice is really heavy on ‘No’ and that makes perfect sense. Both Harris and Pence have a lot at stake here in terms of their temperament. Pence has to show that he’s the man that steadies the ship amidst all of the chaos. He did a great job of that in 2016.

As for Harris, people will be watching her closely as a popular thought is that Biden won’t finish his first term. For whatever reason, Harris didn’t resonate well with voters in the Democratic Primary debates, so getting up from the table or doing anything outside of the norm might not go over well. Expect her to play things close to the vest.

Her assumption is that Biden is on course for a win. That’s what the latest 2020 election odds show.

Pick: No (-2000)

Will Either Candidate Test Positive for COVID-19 By October 13th?

This prop is mostly focused on Pence because there has been an outbreak in the White House. Of course, President Trump had the virus as well as a number of his close colleagues. Pence has seemingly avoided it and the expectation here should be that he avoids it over the next week too. They’re going to be extra cautious.

Pick: No (-175)

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