New poll shows competitive 2016 race in Maine

Of all the states once seen as clearly in Hillary Clinton’s column, a new survey identifies the one perhaps most likely to tip to Donald Trump — and that state is Maine.

A Colby College-Boston Globe poll released Tuesday shows the presidential race in Maine now within the margin of error, with Clinton leading Trump, 42 percent to 39 percent. Also significant: The poll of likely voters, conducted last week by SurveyUSA, showed only a small portion of respondents — 5 percent — remain undecided less than eight weeks before Election Day.

Trump’s ascendancy in Maine is largely due to his dominance in the vast northern sector of state — but analysts say it’s also a reflection of how Maine, like many parts of the country, has become geographically more polarized. Its northern reaches, mostly rural, tend to be far more conservative than the southern, populous part of the state.