English Translation (From the Finnish): With thanks to Erki Viirand

People Bet on the Next Chair of Keskusta (Finnish Centre Party)

The Australian bookmaking organisation Centrebet enables people to place bets on who will become the next Chair of Keskusta. Anneli Jäätteenmäki is the bookies’ favourite with odds of 1.5:1; Olli Rehn follows with 2:1.

The odds for Jäätteenmäki moved from 2.35 to 1.5 due to a few large bets. Three Finns placed four-digit bets on her candidacy – 2,000, 1,329, and 1,000 Euros – and dozens of others have put significant sums on her, as announced by Centrebet.

The overall amount wagered exceeds 15,000 euros (nearly 100,000 Finnish marks).

In the beginning, Paavo Väyrynen boasted the best odds. Even now, he’s third with a 5:1 ratio. Every euro wagered for Hannu Takkula or Matti Vanhanen would return 25-fold. Others on the ranking list include Seppo Kääriäinen, Esko Aho, and Mauri Pekkarinen, with respective ratios of 30, 65, and 75.

Stanford and Harvard, two of the world’s most respected universities, recently published a study concluding that Centrebet predicts election results more accurately than professional public opinion polls, according to a Centrebet press release.

Justin Wolfers and Andrew Leigh followed Centrebet’s odds during last year’s Australian parliamentary elections. According to their study, the country’s newspapers would have served their readership better had they published these odds, instead of public opinion polls, boasts the press release.

Centrebet focuses especially on sports betting, but the company’s website also features wagers on special events, such as the new Chair of Keskusta or the winner of the Eurovision song contest. The company’s home page is at www.centrebet.com.

Olli Riikonen