By Anjali Athavaley
NEW YORK, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Republican candidate DonaldTrump's odds at becoming the next president of the United Statestook a hit following his loss to Senator Ted Cruz of Texas inthe Iowa caucuses, two online betting sites said on Tuesday.
On Tuesday morning, both Ladbrokes PLC and PaddyPower Betfair PLC said the real estate tycoon's odds ofwinning the November election were now 7/1, compared to 3/1 onMonday. That reduced his chances for victory to 13 percent from25 percent on Monday.
Cruz won Monday's Republican Iowa caucuses with 28 percentof the vote compared with 24 percent for Trump, whose aggressiveand unorthodox campaign has been marked by unorthodox andcontroversial stances such as calls to temporarily ban Muslimsfrom entering the United States or build a wall along theU.S.-Mexican border.
Senator Marco Rubio of Florida has taken over as thefavorite to become the Republican nominee after astronger-than-expected third place finish in the caucuses,Ladbrokes said. His odds for the nomination were 4/5 on Tuesday,giving him a 56 percent chance. Trump's odds were 11/4, givinghim a 27 percent chance.
"This could be the first sign that the Trump bubble is aboutto burst," said Matthew Shaddick, head of political odds at Ladbrokes, said in a statement. "The betting is now firmlypointing toward a Clinton-Rubio showdown in November."
Trump's odds have improved since he declared his candidacyin June, when they were 100/1, giving him a 1 percent chance,Ladbrokes said. (Reporting by Anjali Athavaley; Editing by David Gregorio)