Hi, friend. I need to talk to you about some unwelcome news. Nate Silver's FiveThirtyEight just dramatically increased my chances of losing Nevada's Senate seat. If that happens, Democrats will not hold the Senate majority.

I have seen firsthand what the Senate is like with Mitch McConnell in charge: a graveyard of progress and a hall of obstruction. I do not want our race to be the reason McConnell and my Trump-endorsed opponent get their hands on Senate control. So we are doing something we've never done before: trying to raise $500,000 in the next 48 hours.

This is the biggest grassroots fundraising goal I've ever set, and I need you to understand why: Experts at The New York Times, CNN, The Cook Political Report – the list goes on and on – have said I am the most vulnerable senator on the ballot, and polling shows me 1 point down to my opponent, Adam Laxalt (R).

Because of that, Mitch McConnell and his allies are spending more than $50 million to defeat me. With Nevadans already casting ballots, The Hill and Yahoo News are reporting that OUR race could "doom" Democrats' hopes of holding the Senate.

I'm not about to let that happen, but my team and advisors all agree that pulling ahead will take hitting an unprecedented grassroots goal like this: I am personally asking you, friend, to chip in $5 or whatever you can spare to help raise $500,000 for this must-win race. Your donation is absolutely essential to keeping this seat blue and defending our Democratic Senate majority.

With mere weeks until Election Day – and Nevadans already casting early vote ballots – having FiveThirtyEight increase our chances of losing is precisely the movement you don't want to see in a race that will decide Senate control. But believe it or not, friend, we've been here before.

Back in 2016, Mitch McConnell and his allies spent tens of millions of dollars against me. The pundits thought I would lose. But I defied the odds, as well as all the right-wing money against me, to win by 2 points and become our nation's first Latina U.S. senator.

So how did we pull it off? With people like you, friend. People like you donating $10, $20, $50 at a time by the thousands to counter McConnell's megadonor money. That's precisely what it will take to win this time, which is why we've set this ambitious goal to raise $500,000 in 48 hours.

Truly, friend, I can't do any of this without you. I can't win without you. You and this team are my best hope, so please donate $5 or whatever you can to help me raise the resources necessary to combat GOP spending and protect this seat. We MUST win Nevada to hold the Senate!

All of our hard fought progress since my last race can only be continued and built upon if Democrats remain in control of the Senate. From reproductive freedoms to voting rights, our fundamental values as a country are at stake in this election. This race will make or break our future progress as a nation, and it's going to come down to every last grassroots dollar.

So from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

¡La lucha sigue! The fight continues!

Catherine