TRENTON -- GOP gubernatorial hopeful Kim Guadagno's campaign was hit with a bucket of cold water by a new poll Monday, less than a week after a separate survey suggested her rival's lead over her to succeed Gov. Chris Christie wasn't that wide.

A new survey on the race shows Democratic hopeful Phil Murphy with a nearly 20 percent point lead -- 44 percent to 25 percent -- over Guadagno, Christie's second in command, according to the Suffolk University/USA TODAY Network Poll. Among "very likely voters," Murphy's lead drops a percentage point: 45 percent to Guadagno's 27 percent.

Late last week, a Fox News poll showed Murphy's lead at only 13 percentage point -- representing the smallest gap between the two.

But that was short lived.

Making matters worse, Christie could be one of the largest factors hurting Guadagno's chances.

After "don't know," "Chris Christie" was the first word or phrase that came to mind when people heard Guadagno's name, according to the poll. Fifteen percent thought of Christie, followed by 7 percent "Republican" and 6 percent "lieutenant governor."

Seventeen percent responded "don't know."

Christie continues to suffer from a historic low approval rating in the latest survey. Only 16 percent approve of the job he's doing, while 74 percent disapprove.

"Christie's abysmal numbers are dragging down any chance for Kim Guadagno to become governor," David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center in Boston, said.

Murphy, meanwhile, is mostly associated with "Democrat" (6 percent) and "change/new/alternative" (4 percent), according to the poll.

However, the front-runner is dogged by his own hurdles.

"Goldman Sachs" and "Wall Street" come to mind for 6 percent when they think of Murphy. Also, 17 percent "didn't know" enough about him despite the former Goldman Sachs executive spending more than $10 million of his own personal fortune on his primary campaign.

Murphy may have a healthy lead with a little more than 6-weeks to go until election day.

But 24 percent of people, including 21 percent of "very likely" voters remain undecided, according to the poll.

Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or Facebook.