ROCKVILLE, MD. - Another independent candidate is gaining ground in a top-ticket statewide race in the 2018 midterms. Independent candidate Neal Simon touted the results of a new poll from Gonzales Research & Media Services Thursday that show him up 10 points in Maryland's US Senate race.

The poll results shows Simon at 18% among likely Maryland voters -- while the incumbent US Sen. Ben Cardin has dropped below 50%.

In an election environment where several members of the press say independent candidates do not have the support to build up a viable campaign, Gonzalez’s research found that 54% of voters said they will consider voting for an independent candidate in the US Senate race -- including 66% of Democrats in a solidly blue state.

“Now that Marylanders are noticing there is another viable and credible choice for the U.S. Senate besides Ben Cardin, more and more independents, Democrats, and Republicans are supporting our efforts to change the way Washington works,” said Simon. “We are committed to winning on November 6 and will work tirelessly to listen to Marylanders and take our message across the great state of Maryland for the next 26 days.”

The Simon campaign says it purchased the 3 rider questions on the Gonzales Maryland Survey conducted from October 1-6, 2018, because the polling agency wasn't going to include the US Senate race in the poll. The campaign emphasized in a press release Thursday that it had no input in the methodology of the poll.