Can it really be Obama's to lose tonight?

• Published October 15, 2008

CNN.com thinks so. New polling in Virginia showed Barack Obama with a 10-point lead over John McCain today, 53 percent to 43 percent, causing the network to shift that reliably red state into the leans-to-Obama column from toss-up.

If the polling means anything, Obama now would get 277 electoral votes — the first time he’s had more than the 270 needed to win the presidency. Check out the electoral map here.

Of course, the map is based on recent polls, and the election is still 20 days away, so the numbers on that link could change by the time you click on it. A whole lot has happened on the financial fronts in the past 20 days.

Tonight’s 6 p.m. debate gives McCain a chance for achieving what the national pundits like to call a “game-changer.’’

Adam Wilson and I are heading down in a few minutes to The Olympia Performing Arts Center tonight to watch the televised event. It’s beamed by television from Hofstra University in New York starting at 6 p.m.

A local question-answer period for South Sound residents will follow for a half-hour at 7:30 p.m., led by The Olympian’s own, publisher John Winn Miller.

Look for a story in the morning paper. We’ll see what our own residents think.

At 8 p.m., Gov. Chris Gregoire and G.O.P. Party candidate Dino Rossi debate on KING-5 television. We'll have a story on that in the paper, too.