Dem poll: Challenger leads Rep. Bartlett in Maryland

A new Democratic poll has John Delaney (D) leading Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.) by 44 to 42 percent, the latest sign the 10-term congressman is in an uphill battle to keep his seat.

Democrats targeted Bartlett in redistricting: Much of this district is new to him, and went from a district Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) won with 58 percent of the vote to one in which President Obama would have taken 56 percent. The poll shows Obama leading Mitt Romney by 51 percent to 42.

The poll was commissioned by the House Majority PAC, a Democratic super-PAC. While partisan polls should always be viewed with a bit of skepticism, this one actually shows Bartlett to be in a better position than an internal poll from Delaney released in April that showed him with a 9-point lead.

Bartlett's districts is one of Democrats' best pickup opportunities this fall: The Hill rates it "lean Democratic."

The poll of 400 likely voters was conducted from July 23-25 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9 percentage points.