Mayflower-Vilonia Tornado Top AP Story of 2014

Arkansas’ worst natural disaster of 2014 has been selected by Associated Press members as the state’s top news story of the year, edging out the Republican dominance in the midterm elections and court decisions that opened the door to marriages between same-sex couples.

Balloting among AP-member broadcasters and newspaper editors left the Mayflower-Vilonia tornado, the GOP sweep and gay marriage-related court decisions clustered at the top of the list. Political scandals finished in the middle of the pack.

The debate over Arkansas’ Medicaid expansion was the top story in 2013, followed by an ExxonMobil oil pipeline spill at Mayflower.