State Of The Union Betting Odds

State Of The Union Betting Odds For 2026

The State of the Union (SOTU) is a Presidential address or speech which lays out the current administration’s plans for legislation and views of the current state of the nation.

Betting on the State of the Union, like betting on the Presidential election, has become an active category for political wagering, as the event is typically an annual affair. As broadcast technology has improved, the SOTU has become increasingly more watched by the populace at large.

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2026 State Of The Union Odds Betting Odds

The SOTU always invites a host of fun betting lines. These are going to be over/unders and yes/no wagers for the most part, though there are a few “multiple choice” bets mixed in as well. The following State of the Union prop bets are currently posted at BetOnline and will be up until just before President Biden’s 9:00 PM address.

2026 State Of The Union Address

On February 4, 2020, former President Donald Trump delivered the fourth and final State of the Union address of his first term as POTUS. The speech was given while he was the subject of an impeachment trial in the US Senate, making him the first President to address the nation under such conditions.

How To Watch The 2026 State Of The Union

Date: TBA
Time: TBA
Location: Washington DC, USA
Venue: United States Capitol
Broadcast: ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, CNN, MSNBC, FOX News

Is It Legal To Bet On The State Of The Union Address?

Political betting is legal in the US if done through licensed and regulated offshore sportsbooks. Domestic sportsbooks currently do not offer political odds, which include SOTU odds.

However, licensed and regulated offshore books almost always provide political betting odds for SOTU prop bets, Political futures, and more. Keep in mind that sportsbooks may only put these odds up one or two days before a scheduled address, updating their boards with new odds and lines every few hours.

A Brief History Of The State Of The Union

Historically, Presidents were never required to deliver SOTU addresses in person. In fact, many simply wrote their addresses and did not make the trek to the Capitol to give their speeches. Such Presidents employing this tack included:

Calvin Coolidge
Herbert Hoover
Franklin Roosevelt
Harry Truman
Dwight Eisenhower
Richard Nixon
Jimmy Carter

However, including Biden’s SOTU address on March 1, 2022, 98 in-person State of the Union addresses have been delivered by a sitting President. The basis for addressing the nation is written within and mandated by the US Constitution.

The typical procedure for the State of the Union address consists of the speaker of the House of Representatives inviting the President to appear before the two Congressional Houses to give his/her speech.

State of The Union: Interesting Facts

President speaking During the start of our nation’s development, our first president, George Washington, became the first to fulfill this Constitutional tradition in 1790 with an in-person address to Congress in the Senate Chamber of Federal Hall in the old U.S. Capital (New York City). The SOTU address was known only as the Annual Message in 1790 and kept that moniker until 1946. Thomas Jefferson, our nation’s third president, broke the mold and was the first to deliver his Annual Message to Congress in writing.

Written Annual Messages became more commonplace after that. Woodrow Wilson altered that tradition after reigniting the in-person delivery mode in 1913. The Annual Message would later be called the State of the Union under Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration.

Naturally, technological developments have played a big role in how SOTU addresses were/are pushed out to the public at large.

In 1922, at the height of radio’s popularity, Warren Harding gave his SOTU address to a limited US domestic radio audience.
In 1923, Calvin Coolidge was able to radio broadcast his State of the Union address across the nation.
Harry Truman turned to television broadcast for his SOTU address in 1947.
In 1965, Lyndon Johnson gave his televised State of the Union address in the later evening.
In 1997, Bill Clinton’s SOTU address was carried live on the Internet.
In 2004, George W. Bush gave his State of the Union message through a high-definition television broadcast.
In 2021, President Joe Biden did not deliver a SOTU address, as new Presidents typically give a speech to a joint session of Congress instead of a State of the Union address. Biden’s first SOTU was delivered on March 1, 2022 during the Russia-Ukraine skirmish.

What Can I Typically Bet On During a State Of The Union Address?

Typical State of the Union bets made available through licensed sportsbooks include prop bets such as the following:

“What will the President wear during the SOTU?”
“How long will the State of the Union address be?”
“What topic will the President discuss first during the SOTU?”
“How will those in Congress react to the SOTU?”
“What will the rebuttal to the SOTU be based on?”

Though these topics might seem broad, offshore political betting sites will always post specific guidelines to help inform your wagers.

State Of The Union FAQs

If a President serves more than one term, do they deliver the SOTU every year?

Historically, Presidents tend to deliver their State of the Union addresses every year. However, there are Presidents are who have delivered two SOTU addresses in a single year, like George Washington in 1790 on January 8 and then again on December 8.

Are US Presidents required to give a State of the Union address?

No, Presidents are not required to deliver the State of the Union address in person, though a written SOTU is a Constitutional mandate. However, both William Henry Harrison and James A. Garfield did not deliver or write any State of the Union addresses, so this is not a hard and fast rule.

Does Congress affect the SOTU?

The House Speaker has the ability to directly affect the scheduling of the annual State of the Union address. This effect was recently seen during the 2019 government shutdown where the President’s SOTU address had to be rescheduled from January 29 to February 5.

Do State of the Union addresses really affect anything?

While some SOTU addresses typically provide the public with a viewpoint of the nation’s current status and future, SOTU addresses made by the President have been used to rally the public to the President’s agenda. This could be seen during Bush’s SOTU address convincing America of the need to invade Iraq, for example. The import of the State of the Union all depends on the motives and political realities in place at the time of the speech.