Barro said he has bet that President Bush will win Pennsylvania—but he bets with his head, not his political leanings.

“I’m not betting for who I prefer: that leads to poor betting,” Barro said. “My bets are much more about who is more likely to win.”

Knesevitch said that this objective strategy is common among online political gamblers.

“Tradesports asks a very different question than public opinion polls. Not who are you going to vote for, but who do you think is going to win,” Knesevitch said.

But Frank said that the online betting is both a show of support for one’s favorite candidates and an attempt to profit from their future win.

“You presumably wouldn’t be supporting someone unless you think they’re going to win,” Frank said.

According to Burden, the Iowa Electronic Futures Market—a real-money market where bettors can buy futures contracts based on the outcome of economic and political events—is more popular among academics.

On the Iowa Electronic Futures Market, Bush has 51 percent of the support.

“I would guess that the Iowa market is closer to the truth because it’s more likely to be academics whereas tradesports is more likely to be people who are just excited about the elections,” Burden said.

Institute of Politics President Ilan T. Graff ’05 said that the student involvement with online betting shows the enthusiasm young people have for this election.

“It’s another gateway for young people to get involved,” Graff said.

Bush’s slight lead in the money markets has led some to celebrate.

“I think that’s promising for us,” said Lauren K. Truesdell ’06, spokeswoman for the Harvard Republican Club. “Because no one’s going to bet on someone if they don’t actually think they’re going to win.”