Sweeping and sudden funding changes this year put two revered after-school programs for low-income Texans and a rural teacher training initiative at risk of closure.

The Fourth of July flood bore a striking similarity to the Hill Country flood that killed 10 summer campers in 1987. In the following years, officials took little action to protect against the next storm.

The contest would unearth brewing Democratic tensions over age and experience, forcing Austin politicos to choose between two well-liked progressives.