Gov. Phil Murphy gets poor marks for how he has handled the water crisis gripping Newark from the relatively few New Jereysans who are aware of problem, according to a new poll.

The Monmouth University Poll released Tuesday also shows Murphy’s overall rating from residents continues to be mixed about 20 months into his tenure, hovering around the same number it’s been since the spring of 2017.

“Murphy’s approval rating has been stuck at a nearly even split this year," said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute “Recent events, such as the Newark water crisis, have not helped cast him in the best light. But the bigger issue seems to be that he is simply flying under the radar for most New Jerseyans."

Only 10 percent of Garden State adults approve of how the Democratic governor has responded to the lead contamination affecting some of the water supply in the state’s largest city, while 28 disapprove.

But more than six in ten polled either had no opinion (41 percent) or had not heard about the issue (21 percent).

Even members of Murphy’s own party give him a negative assessment — 18 percent approve, 27 percent disapprove, and 37 percent have no opinion.

Among those who have heard a lot about the problem, 19 percent approve of Murphy’s response, 41 percent disapprove, and 41 percent have no opinion.

Among residents of Essex and Hudson counties — who live nearest to Newark — 12 percent approve, 44 percent disapprove, and 29 percent have no opinion.

“The fact that this crisis happened in the part of New Jersey where Murphy’s strongest partisan base lives has not helped the governor’s overall standing,” Murray said.

As for Murphy’s overall approval rating? Forty-one percent of New Jerseyans approve of the job he’s doing as governor, while 38 disapprove.

That’s similar to Monmouth’s last poll, from January, which showed he had a 43 percent approval rating and 40 percent disapproval rating. A poll from last April put his numbers at 44 percent approval and 28 percent disapproval.

His rating remains lower than previous recent governors at similar points in their tenure. Republican Chris Christie’s numbers were 52 percent approval and 38 percent disapproval in October 2011. Democrat Jon Corzine was at 46 percent approval and 32 percent approval in September 2007.

Murphy’s numbers are similar to Democrat Jim McGreevey, who was at 38 percent approval and 40 disapproval in a September 2003 Rutgers-Eagleton poll.

The poll also found:

A little more than 1-in-5 Jerseyans — 21 percent — have no opinion about how Murphy is doing.

His rating among fellow Democrats — who outnumber Republicans nearly 2-to-1 in the state — is 71 percent approval and 11 disapproval. Among independents, he’s at 28 percent approval and 49 percent disapproval. Among Republicans, he’s at 16 percent approval and 67 percent disapproval.

Twelve percent of residents say Murphy has achieved major accomplishments so far and 42 percent say he has seen minor accomplishments. Another 36 percent say he has no real accomplishments and 10 percent have no opinion.

More Jerseyans (49 percent) feel Murphy is more concerned with his own political future than those who believe he’s focused primarily on governing his own state (33 percent).

Murphy continues to get mixed reviews on the economy. Twenty-five percent say his policies have helped the poor, 21 percent say they has hurt them, and 32 percent say they have had no impact. Twenty-seven percent say his policies have helped the wealthy, 14 percent say they have hurt them, and 31 percent say they have had no impact. Seventeen percent say his policies have helped the middle class, 31 percent say they have hurt them, and 36 percent say they have had no impact.

Only 10 percent of residents feel Murphy has helped property taxpayers, while 39 percent say he’s hurt them, and 33 percent say he’s had no impact.

Sixteen percent of NJ Transit riders say Murphy has helped the state’s beleaguered mass transportation system, which he has vowed to improve. Eighteen percent say he’s hurt the system and 20 percent have no opinion.

Twenty-three percent of residents say Murphy’s administration has helped businesses in the state, while 26 percent say it’s hurt them, and 26 percent say it’s had no impact.

The poll was conducted via telephone with 713 New Jersey adults from Sept. 12-16. The margin of error was plus-or-minus 3.7 percentage point.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01.

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