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- GRAPEVINE, Page 19HANDICAPPING THE HOMETOWN BOY
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- By JANICE CASTRO/Reported by Wendy Cole
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- Iowans may love favorite son TOM HARKIN, but last week on
- the eve of their caucuses, some of his neighbors were trading
- Harkin futures at just 8. THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA has been
- operating a futures market in presidential prospects for
- students, faculty and staff. In the winner-take-all gamble, top
- share price is $1; the average investment is $15. Traders at
- about 20 other college campuses, including UCLA, Caltech,
- Northwestern and the University of Virginia, will soon be able
- to play. So far, the market seems to be a better barometer than
- opinion polls. In 1988, the day before the election, Bush shares
- were trading 8 percentage points higher than DukakisU_almost
- exactly his victory margin in the popular vote. Currently,
- Clinton is the heavy favorite for the Democratic nomination,
- trading at 53, followed by Kerrey at 14. Tsongas is leading
- Harkin by nearly 2; Jerry Brown started well at a penny but has
- fallen to 0.4.
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