The spotlight has largely turned to 2014, but in one part of Travis County, this year's November ballot will include a crowded and competitive special election for a state House seat currently held by Rep. Mark Strama, D-Austin.

What's likely to be one of the nation's most closely watched 2014 races kicks into full swing today.

Your evening reading: Williams leaving Senate; Libertarian Kathie Glass announces bid for governor; poll shows Abbott leading Davis by 8 points

On Oct. 1, I talked about the coming constitutional referendum on funding the state water plan with Laura Huffman, state director of The Nature Conservancy of Texas, and state Rep. Allan Ritter, R-Nederland, the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee.

Houston lawyer Kathie Glass announced Wednesday that she will again run as a Libertarian candidate for governor, saying Texas voters are frustrated with the two major parties.

In an effort to keep immigration reform alive during the debate over the government shutdown, congressional Democrats have filed legislation that includes elements of a border-security measure backed by a key GOP leader.

Reeve and Ben are joined by a handful of special guests, including Shinyribs, Jeremy Bird of Battleground Texas, and former state Rep. Aaron Peña, R-Edinburg, for a special live TribCast recorded in KUT's Studio 1A during The Texas Tribune Festival.

Republican Greg Abbott is leading Democrat Wendy Davis by 8 points in a hypothetical matchup for Texas governor, but it’s a statistical dead heat among women, according to a Texas Lyceum Poll of registered voters.

Some in the Tea Party faction of the Texas GOP are encouraging talk of a challenge to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, raising a question: Is he vulnerable to a challenge?

At the 2013 Texas Tribune Festival, Battleground Texas Senior Adviser Jeremy Bird, state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, and former Houston Mayor Bill White talked about what it will take to make Democrats competitive in Texas again.

UPDATED: San Angelo's O.C. Fisher Reservoir, which after years of persistent drought is completely dry, served as the backdrop for Gov. Rick Perry's remarks Wednesday in support of a constitutional amendment to use $2 billion from the Rainy Day Fund toward water-planning initiatives.

As thousands of federal workers across Texas and the nation prepare to go without paychecks during the government shutdown, some lawmakers are planning to forgo their federal pay, too.

Wendy Davis, expected to announce for governor on Thursday, is relying on a tight-knit group of people who have fought in the political trenches together — often against the odds, and often in territory inhospitable to Democrats. 

Gov. Rick Perry's latest cross-country campaign to lure out-of-state business to Texas and Attorney General Greg Abbott's gubernatorial campaign are costing taxpayers thousands in security bills.

Like Fort Worth Democrat Wendy Davis before him, Texas Republican Ted Cruz has discovered the political power of a well-timed, long-winded and highly publicized monologue. And like Davis, he's getting some blowback.

Ted Cruz's latest tack has failed to bring Congress any closer to ending the government shutdown.

Your evening reading: Perry says wife misspoke about abortion; Abbott announces settlement over American Airlines-US Airways merger; rocky start for health insurance exchange 

Full video of my conversation about the Tea Party with former U.S. House Majority Leader Dick Armey; state Reps. Matt Krause, R-Fort Worth, and Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford; and grassroots leaders JoAnn Fleming, Julie McCarty and Debra Medina.

The famed art installation made to look like a Prada store is drawing scrutiny from the Texas Department of Transportation over whether it constitutes an illegal advertisement.

UPDATED: Under a settlement announced Tuesday, American Airlines has agreed to ensure that after its merger with US Airways, the airline will maintain daily service to 22 Texas airports for at least three years.