Vote below for your favorite story of the year. Voting will run from May 17 through June 17.

Thanks to the generosity of numerous donors, this year's award features the following monetary prizes:

• Overall winner: $500
• Runner-up: $200
• Honorable mention (third place): $100

Please note: IP addresses and vote locations and times are being monitored. Attempts to "stuff" or manipulate the vote through repeated voting, or the use of proxy servers, will result in those votes being removed. Repeated abuse could result in a story being removed from contention. For more on this issue, go here.