But, he said, it's exceedingly difficult for a challenger to beat an incumbent in a primary. An incumbent like Wasserman Schultz comes into the race with an enormous advantage because she's well known to the district's voters. Canova has to introduce himself — and persuade voters to support him over a person who's won every election since she first ran for state Legislature in 1992. "On the one hand it's a significant amount of money, but the race is for votes, not just the most dollars or donors," Gonzales said.