Slideshow: 2016 Texas news in photos

2016 Year in Review

For those obsessed with Texas government and politics, 2016 was filled with big news, from the somber (the ambush of police officers in Dallas) to the absurd (University of Texas students toting dildos to protest the new campus carry gun law). And then there was the election. Here's our roundup of the year's most memorable Texas stories.

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Maria Guadalupe Garcia Rodriguez of Ciudad Juárez holds the hand of her daughter, Linda Rodriguez, through a U.S.-Mexico border fence on Feb. 15. She had not seen her daughter in 28 years, since Linda was 6 months old. Their reunion was part of an event organized by the Border Network for Human Rights, which sought to highlight family separation and other issues affecting immigrant families in advance of a visit to Juárez by Pope Francis. Photo by Ivan Pierre Aguirre.  

Anti-abortion demonstrators, left, and advocates for abortion rights face off in front of the U.S. Supreme Court as Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt is argued inside on March 2. The case focused on a 2013 Texas abortion law known as House Bill 2, which led to the closure of more than 20 abortion clinics. The court overturned the law. Photo by Allison Shelley.

A Border Patrol agent makes his way through harsh terrain along the Rio Grande in Starr County. A recent influx of women and children from Central America crossing the Rio Grande into Texas and seeking asylum slowed some in 2015, only to regain strength in 2016. Photo by Martin do Nascimento.

A digital sign outside the Chase Bank building in downtown Midland displays the latest per-barrel price of oil in May. The price was less than half of the peak from mid-2014. Photo by Jerod Foster.

Former First Lady Anita Perry, left, helps unveil the official portrait of Gov. Rick Perry in the Capitol rotunda on May 6. Photo by Bob Daemmrich.

Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith interviewed President Barack Obama about civic engagement in a digital age at Austin's South by Southwest on March 11. Photo by Bob Daemmrich.

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings shakes Chief of Police David Brown's hand as former First Lady Laura Bush, former President George W. Bush, First Lady Michelle Obama, President Barack Obama and U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz applaud on July 12. The officials were attending a memorial honoring five officers who were killed by sniper fire in Dallas. Photo by Robert Hart.

Protestors at a Black Lives Matter protest at the Texas Capitol on July 15, a week after a sniper killed five Dallas police officers. Photo by Stephen Spillman.

The granite memorial on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin in memory of the victims of Charles Whitman’s murderous on-campus shooting spree. The 50th anniversary of the shooting was Aug. 1. Photo by Tamir Kalifa.

Thousands attend a rally for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in Austin on Aug. 23. Photo by Todd Wiseman.

Seis Steves protests the newly enacted campus carry gun law at the Cocks Not Glocks rally at The University of Texas at Austin on Aug. 24, the first day of classes for the school year. The law allows handguns to be carried into most buildings on public university campuses in Texas. The protest group was created by a UT alumna after she learned that sex toys would continue to be banned in classrooms even as firearms were allowed. Photo by Callie Richmond.

Hillary Clinton supporters watch election night coverage at the Hidalgo County and Hillary for America Headquarters in McAllen on Nov. 8. Photo by Reynaldo Leal.

An aerial photograph of the Stolthaven Oil Tanking facility along the Houston Ship Channel. If a strong hurricane hit the Houston area head on, scientists say it could send a massive storm surge up the 52-mile shipping lane. President Obama in December signed into law a bill that could help expedite the long process of constructing a storm protection system. Photo by Edmund D. Fountain.

Read more year in review stories here.

Disclosure: The University of Texas at Austin has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune. A complete list of Tribune donors and sponsors can be viewed here.