Politics | Alaska Alaska Turning Purple as Election Nears Obama leads in poll; Democrat hasn't taken state since 1964 By Dustin Lushing Posted Aug 14, 2008 12:36 PM CDT Copied Republican presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.,and his wife Cindy board the Straight Talk Air campaign charter airplane, Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008, in Newark, N.J.. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) The cold, snowy tundras of Alaska may transform into a battleground this November as Barack Obama and John McCain vie for the Land of the Midnight Sun's three electoral votes. Alaska hasn't gone blue since 1964, when LBJ won in a landslide, but an Anchorage-based poll currently has Obama leading McCain by 5 percentage points. The poll is far from exact—it has a margin of error of 4.9 points. But scandals affecting Republicans like Sen. Ted Stevens are providing a boost to the Obama camp. When asked if Obama can sustain momentum into November, one veteran research director responded, "I think we're definitely in play." Read These Next It's a survival story fit for a sea shanty. Got grandkids? You may want to set up a secret code with them. Ashley Biden posting a lot about 'freedom' amid divorce news. It's a 'hard reset' for Monica Seles. Report an error