Democrat Angela Alsobrooks leads Republican Larry Hogan in the Maryland U.S. Senate race by 7 percentage points, according to an Emerson College poll released Tuesday.

Alsobrooks’ lead over Hogan has tightened since the Boston-based college conducted its last poll in May. According to a query of 890 likely voters on Sept. 12 and 13, the Prince George’s County executive leads 49% to Hogan’s 42%, a decrease from May, when it gave Alsobrooks a 10-point lead over Hogan. Another poll conducted late last month by Annapolis firm Gonzales Research & Media Services said Alsobrooks led by five points.

A Hogan campaign spokesperson touted the latest Emerson poll as evidence that the former governor was “gaining ground,” despite the college’s “outlier” role in the Maryland race.

“It’s another sign that our message has real momentum against a campaign based on millions of dollars of lies and scare tactics,” Hogan campaign spokesperson Blake Kernen said via email. “Governor Hogan has said from the start that he’s the underdog in this race, which is why he’s working to win every vote and represent all Marylanders as an independent swing vote.”

The Emerson poll, which was conducted in partnership with The Hill and DC News Now, had a 3.2 percentage point margin of error. Nine percent of voters reported being undecided about whom they would vote for in the Nov. 5 election.

Roger Hartley, dean of the University of Baltimore’s College of Public Affairs, said the latest poll was evidence that Hogan had not found a winning formula to convince independents, moderate Republicans, and undecided Democrats to support him on the national stage despite enjoying broad popularity in Maryland.

Democratic leaders have come out in force against Hogan for his reticence to codify abortion access, and have framed his matchup against Alsobrooks as key to the party maintaining control of the Senate.

“This is evidence the electorate is saying, ‘Nothing personal, Larry, but this is bigger than you. It’s bigger than Maryland,’ ” Hartley said of the national influence on the Maryland matchup. “We’re being given a sense of what a true ‘Blue Wave’ in Maryland looks like,” he said.

Alsobrooks may benefit from increased turnout, as her race against Hogan is also taking place during the 2024 presidential election, which tends to attract more voters, Hartley said. Hogan won office in 2018 and 2022 in off-years that drew less attention.

“This recent poll demonstrates what we’ve known for a while: Marylanders understand we must defend our Democratic Senate majority to protect our freedoms, fight for safer communities, and lower costs so hardworking families can not just get by, but can thrive,” said Alsobrooks campaign spokesperson Meredith Happy. “With less than 50 days until election day and Republicans continuing to pour millions of dollars into the race, [Alsobrooks is] traveling to every corner of our state to remind Marylanders what exactly is at stake in this race — their futures.”