ALBANY — Former Republican Gov. George Pataki has leapt ahead of Democrat Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in a hypothetical US Senate match-up, according to a new poll.

The statewide Marist College survey found voters would narrowly favor the three-term governor — 48 percent to 44 percent — over Gillibrand if the 2010 election were held today.

That’s an 8-point swing from a similar poll in July, when Pataki, who’s reportedly considering a run, trailed the freshman senator, with 42 percent to her 46.

“As time goes on, she doesn’t seem to be picking up in the numbers much,” said Lee Miringoff of Marist.

“Pataki has substantial name recognition, and for him, the longer that he’s away from being governor probably the better.”

Miringoff called the race to fill the Senate seat vacated by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton a “wide open contest.”

In January, Democratic Gov. Paterson appointed Gillibrand — then a two-term congresswoman from a right-leaning Albany-area district — to the post over Camelot heiress Caroline Kennedy.