The odds-on Michelle Obama winning the 2024 election surged following President Joe Biden‘s widely criticized performance during his first presidential debate against Donald Trump, despite the former first lady having previously ruled out running and endorsed the incumbent.
Leading bookmakers Bet 365, Sky Bet, and William Hill were offering odds of 16/1 (5.9 percent), 16/1 (5.9 percent), and 20/1 (4.8 percent), respectively, immediately before the June 27 debate, according to data compiled by the Odds Checker website. As of 8 a.m. ET on Tuesday, these had changed to 12/1 (7.7 percent) for Bet 365, 14/1 (6.7 percent) for Sky Bet, and 10/1 (9.1 percent) for William Hill.
At several points during Thursday’s debate, Biden appeared to lose his train of thought, raising fresh concerns about the 81-year-old’s age and mental faculties. At one point when discussing immigration the president said: “And I’m going to continue to move it until we get the total ban on…the total initiative relative to what we’re going to do with more Border Patrol and more asylum officers.”
Former President Trump replied: “I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said either.”
Biden’s performance sparked a renewed debate among Democrats over whether he should remain the party’s presumptive 2024 presidential nominee, with CNN chief national correspondent John King claiming it had triggered “a very aggressive panic” within its ranks.
In a video posted on X, Johanna Maska, a former Barack Obama aide and Democratic consultant, commented: “We cannot do this Democrats. Joe Biden can’t put a sentence together. We have to change our candidate, and we have so many good candidates who are sitting on the sideline.
According to Odds Checker, the odds of Biden winning in November were 13/8 (38.1 percent) with Bet 365 and 11/8 (42.1 percent) with both Sky Bet and William Hill immediately before the debate commenced on June 27. However this has since declined sharply to 15/4 (21.1 percent) with Bet 365, 7/2 (22.2 percent) with Sky Bet and 3/1 (25 percent) with William Hill.
Speaking to Newsweek, Crystal Carson, Michelle Obama’s director of communications, reiterated an earlier statement the former first lady’s office made in March.
This said: “As former First Lady Michelle Obama has expressed several times over the years, she will not be running for president.
“Mrs. Obama supports President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris‘ re-election campaign.”
Joy Malone/GETTY
When contacted for comment, Trump’s campaign sent Newsweek a statement released post-debate on Thursday, which said: “Tonight President Trump delivered the greatest debate performance and victory in history to the largest voter audience in history, making clear exactly how he will improve the lives of every American…
“Joe Biden, on the other hand, showed exactly why he deserves to be fired. Despite taking a weeklong vacation at Camp David to prepare for the debate, Biden was unable to defend his disastrous record on the economy and the border. Throughout the debate Biden lied, invented stories and could not articulate a single plan to make things less expensive and keep our people safe, choosing instead to change the subject and dwell on the past.”
The odds of California Governor Gavin Newsom, who has also denied having any intention to run, winning the 2024 presidential election also increased sharply following Thursday’s debate from 20/1 (4.8 percent) with Bet 365 to 5/1 (16.7 percent) on Friday.
Immediately after Thursday’s debate Newsom said he was “very proud” of Biden and described the suggestion he could run on the Democratic ticket as “a non-sequitur.”
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.