Compare Rick Perry to other leading Republican presidential candidates on everything from their personal histories and governing experience to their stances on gay marriage and immigration. 

On the national stage, Texas' economy is its best selling point. But this so-called "Texas Miracle" doesn't extend statewide: In the border region, unemployment reaches as high as 13.2 percent, and the median income is 30 percent lower than the statewide average. 

These interactive maps will give you a closer look at the unemployment rates, the number of jobs created or lost over the last year and the median annual income of the metropolitan regions in Texas.

The debate over whether job creation in Texas economy is a "mirage" or a "miracle" raises several questions: What jobs do Texans commonly hold right now? How much do those jobs pay? And what jobs is Texas creating?

Gov. Rick Perry told a child questioner in New Hampshire today that Texas public schools teach creationism alongside evolution — a statement that state education experts are refuting in varying degrees.

The head of the Texas agency that oversees programs to help low-income households has turned in his resignation. 

DAY 17 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: A flow chart to visualize the new — and complicated — claims process for the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association.

A Texas Tribune analysis found that the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association mishandled claims after Hurricane Ike and paid millions of dollars to defend its fraudulent behavior and claimants’ lawyers profited from huge settlements and legal fees. 

An interactive map comparing how much TWIA paid claimants for three major hurricanes that hit the Texas coast and the number of lawsuits claimants filed in return. Also find the ten law firms with the biggest settlements from TWIA and compare the number of lawsuits and legal defense spending for each storm.

The “Texas jobs miracle” is a hot topic, but Texas’ unemployment rate is higher than all four states that border it — and it’s up slightly from last year. So why is everyone touting Texas, and Gov. Rick Perry, for its strong economy?

Texans are already opening their pocketbooks to show support for their favorite presidential candidates. The Tribune’s visualizations of data from federal campaign finance reports reveal who has collected and spent the most in Texas.

In the legislative session, state lawmakers passed bills to help exonerated Texans who have been convicted of crimes but later determined to be innocent. Use this interactive to search for the big debates on criminal justice.

State lawmakers considered a wide variety of bills, from shooting feral hogs from helicopters to criminalizing “inappropriate” touching during airport security searches. Use this interactive to find lawmakers’ commentary on the measures.

The controversial “sanctuary cities” bill failed to pass, but other immigration-related bills advanced and were signed by the governor. Explore this interactive to pinpoint the days lawmakers debated issues related to immigration. 

The Legislature passed several health-care related measures including the abortion sonogram bill, Medicaid cuts and a significant defunding of Planned Parenthood. Use this interactive to find what lawmakers said during the health care debates.