Republican gubernatorial candidate Charlie Baker has a nine point lead over Democratic rival Martha Coakley in the latest Boston Globe/SocialSphere. Nine points.

From the Globe:

Baker’s standing has improved from last week’s poll, which showed the two candidates dead even. It can be attributed largely to the gains he has made in voters’ perceptions of who would improve the economy and manage state government, areas that already were tilting his way. At the same time, Baker has offset the deficits he faced on issues such as education and health care, where Coakley still holds an edge, but a diminished one. “There is just positive movement in every single metric we can ask around Baker,’’ said pollster John Della Volpe, chief executive of SocialSphere Inc., which conducts the weekly poll for the Globe. “The more voters have gotten to know him, the stronger he performs.’’

The three independent candidates in the race still have not gained traction in the polls. Evan Falchuck is a distant third at just 3 percent in the polls. Jeff McCormick and Scott Lively each netted 2 percent. The poll has a margin of error of 4.4 points.

Click here to read the full Boston Globe story.