Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley is leading Republican challenger Bob Ehrlich by 8 percentage points in the latest Rasmussen poll.
O’Malley earned 49 percent of the vote compared to Ehrlich’s 41 percent in a survey of 750 likely Maryland voters, with a 4-point margin of error. Eight percent of voters are still undecided and 1 percent prefer another candidate.
After months of statistical dead heat between the candidates, O’Malley began breaking away from his opponent in September. Rasmussen measured a 3-point gap in a Sept. 15 poll, with O’Malley earning 50 percent of votes compared to Ehrlich’s 47 percent. But the 4-point margin of error kept the race a close toss-up.
The new poll shows 56 percent of Marylanders approve of the job O’Malley is doing as governor, up 5 percentage points from last month. Ehrlich has roughly 80 percent of Republicans’ support, and O’Malley claims 78 percent of Democrats’ support.
Nearly one out of every five polled voters said they are members of the national Tea Party, which is higher than the 13 percent national average.
