Hillary Clinton, the US Democratic Party's once formidable presidential candidate in next year's election, appears to be on a free fall as her lead in the polls continues to plummet.

In a new Washington Post/ABC poll released on Monday, Clinton got 42 percent, a huge drop from 63 percent in the same poll just last July.

Nevertheless, she remains the top Democratic candidate followed by Bernie Sanders with 24 percent and Vice President Joe Biden with 21 percent.

According to the Washington Post, Clinton's support eroded among women, particularly among whites. Among Democratic-leaning female voters, Clinton's support dropped from 71 percent to 42 percent in eight weeks.

As a result, her lead over Sanders and Biden has been cut by two-thirds.

Sanders' number rose by 10 points while Biden's increased by nine.

Clinton admitted the drop in support on Monday. "I've been in and around enough campaigns to know that there's an ebb and flow. Polls go up and down; people's attention and decision-making changes over time. I feel very confident about where we are in the campaign and very committed to doing everything I can to make my case as effectively as possible to women and men, and I think that will be successful," she said.

In the same poll, Donald Trump led the pack among Republican contenders with 33 percent followed by Ben Carson with 20 percent. Jeb Bush followed with 8 percent and Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Rand Paul.

The poll also showed that 56 percent of the respondents view Clinton as not honest and trustworthy while 39 percent said she is.

A total of 51 percent also said Clinton does not understand the problems of ordinary people while 46 percent said she does.

In addition, 55 percent said they disapprove about how Clinton is handling her email controversy while 34 percent approve.

A total of 56 percent said Clinton "has the kind of personality and temperament it takes to serve effectively as president."

As for Trump, 60 percent said he is not fit to become president and 59 percent said he is not honest and trustworthy.

A recent CBS News/YouGov poll showed Sanders ahead of Clinton in Iowa and New Hampshire while Clinton leads in South Carolina.