Tammy Baldwin holds lead over Eric Hovde in Wisconsin U.S. Senate race in new Marquette poll

A little more than four months ahead of the Nov. 5 election, Democratic. U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin holds a lead over Republican businessman Eric Hovde, according to the latest Marquette University Law School poll.

Baldwin is seeking a third Senate term. She was first elected in 2012, defeating Republican former Gov. Tommy Thompson by 5.6 points. She nearly doubled her victory margin in 2018, fending off a challenge from Republican former state Sen. Leah Vukmir by 10.8 points.

Hovde, a banking and real estate mogul, finished a close second to Thompson in the 2012 GOP Senate primary and contemplated a 2018 Senate run.

Among both registered and likely voters, 52% said they backed Baldwin while 47% supported Hovde. That's including undecided voters who were asked to name the candidate they would support if they were forced to choose. Without those undecided voters, Baldwin led Hovde 45-38 among registered voters and 49-40 among likely voters.

The poll was in the field June 12-20, surveying 871 registered voters and 784 likely voters. The margin of error for registered voters is +/- 4.6 percentage points, and +/- 4.9 percentage points for likely voters.

This is the second time Marquette has polled since Hovde launched his campaign in February. In April, Baldwin led among registered voters 52% over Hovde's 47%. The race was tied among likely voters.

Baldwin is viewed favorably by 45% of voters, down from 47% in April. She's viewed unfavorably by 44% of voters, up from 42% in April. In the most recent poll and in April, just 11% of voters had no opinion on the senator.

Hovde is currently viewed favorably by 23% of voters, up from 19% in April. He's now viewed unfavorably by 32% of voters, up from 24% in April. The percentage of voters with no opinion on Hovde has gone down to 44% from 56% in April.

The candidates will square off in an Oct. 18 debate, which will be televised and broadcast on radio throughout the state. Hovde has agreed to participate in two other debates, while Baldwin has only committed to one.

The race is rated "lean Democrat" by both the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter and Sabato's Crystal Ball. The election could help determine which party controls the Senate.

Jessie Opoien can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Tammy Baldwin holds lead over Eric Hovde in new Wisconsin poll