Democratic U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez led Republican rival Bob Hugin by 15 percentage points among likely voters in a poll released a day before New Jersey voters go to the polls.

Menendez was ahead of Hugin, a former Celgene Corp. executive, 55 percent to 40 percent in a Quinnipiac University poll released Monday.

It was the second straight survey to give him a double-digit lead after several polls showed a tight race. A Stockton University poll released Friday had Menendez ahead, 51 percent to 39 percent. Menendez never trailed in any survey.

Quinnipiac polling analyst Mary Snow said voters' antipathy to Republican President Donald Trump fueled Menendez's campaign.

"While they may hold their nose to cast a ballot for Sen. Bob Menendez, voters signal they want to keep New Jersey's Senate seat in the 'D' column in a blue state where President Donald Trump consistently remains unpopular," Snow said.

Even as both candidates crisscrossed the state in the final days, the poll said 95 percent of Menendez's supporters and 92 percent of Hugin's had made up their minds and would not be swayed.

Earlier surveys indicated disapproval with the senator, who was rebuked by the Senate Ethics Committee for intervening with federal agencies on behalf of Dr. Salomon Melgen, while receiving gifts and trips from his friend and campaign donor.

Hugin pumped $36 million of his money into the race, most of it on negative ads reminding voters of Menendez's foibles. But in a Democratic state where just 37 percent of likely voters in the Stockton poll viewed Trump's job performance as good or excellent, party loyalty appeared to have triumphed.

For his part, Menendez sought to link Hugin to Trump, a fellow Republican who he contributed $200,000 during the 2016 election to help him get elected.

The poll of 1,115 New Jersey likely voters was conducted Oct. 29-Nov. 4 and had a margin of error of 4 percentage points.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.