The election may be on a knife edge but Irish bookmaker Paddy Power has called it for Barack Obama.

A spokeswoman agreed they were “sticking their necks” out but said: "Romney gave it a good shot and is doing well in the popular vote, but we suspect he's had his moment in the sun and is likely to be remembered more for his legendary gaffes than presidential potential.

"The overall betting trend has shown one way traffic for Obama and punters seem to have called it 100% correct."

The bookmakers still say they risk paying out about $500,000 if Romney wins but betting has been "one-way traffic" for Mr Obama according to the bookmakers, with 75 per cent of money going on Barack Obama.

Obama’s odds are currently 2/9 meaning you would have to put down 9 dollars to win 2 while Romney is 11/5 meaning you would put five dollars down to win 11.