"I never could have imagined in a million years that I would be Miss America, let alone that I would be Miss Alaska,"
See? Not to worry. She sounds plenty blonde.
You are all missing the point. There is a logic to that statement, if you would just think about it for a while.
The reverse ("... never dreamed that I would be Miss Alaska, let alone Miss America...") implies merely that she hadn't imagined being talented enough to become Miss Alaska - let along talented enough to beat out all the other 49 states.
Her statement, however, has a different implication: She is implying that becoming Miss Alaska was somehow less plausible or more ridiculous than becoming Miss America - not because the competition is harder, but because becoming Miss Alaska - for her - is somehow more incredible than becoming, say, Miss Hawaii. So she is making a statement about the STATE whose candidate she has become.
And I think that it is a very understandable viewpoint. No one would bat an eye at a semi-Asian woman being elected Miss Hawaii - where Caucasians are in the minority.
Regards,