How serious is this?

There’ve been dramatic moves in the Republican nomination betting during the past few hours which have seen the price on the former governor of Texas, Jeb Bush, move in from 70/1 on Betfair to about 20/1 now.

This put the brother of the last Republican party president into the third favourite slot for the nomination behind Romney and Santorum even though he is not a declared runner and is not on the ballots in any of the primaries.

What’s set this going has been a report on ABC News that a “prominent senatator” will publicly call for for another candidate, most likely Jeb bush, to enter the race if Romney fails to win his home state of Michigan in the primary a week on Tuesday. This is from the ABC news report:-

“If Romney cannot win Michigan, we need a new candidate,” said the senator, who has not endorsed anyone and requested anonymity.

The senator believes Romney will ultimately win in Michigan but says he will publicly call for the party to find a new candidate if he does not.

“We’d get killed,” the senator said if Romney manages to win the nomination after he failed to win the state in which he grew up.

It would have to be somebody else, the senator said. Who? “Jeb Bush,” the former Florida governor..“

At the end of January Jeb Bush refused all requests to endorse Romney in the Florida primary – an act which of itself set of speculation about his ambitions.

This morning I got on Jeb at 70/1.

@MikeSmithsonOGH