On June 26, 2020, the United States House of Representatives voted 232–180 to grant statehood to the District of Columbia,[158] but the bill, H.R. 51, failed in the Senate when the 116th Congress ended. On January 3, 2021, D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton reintroduced the bill at the start of the 117th Congress with a record 202 co-sponsors,[159] and on January 27, Senator Tom Carper of Delaware introduced a companion bill, S. 51, into the Senate with a record 38 co-sponsors.[160] As the Democratic Party retained its control of the House and narrowly regained that of the Senate after the 2020 elections, it is possible that the 117th Congress (2021–2023) will grant statehood to the District of Columbia. This would add two seats to the Senate, both of which would probably be filled in special elections during the 2022 election cycle. The addition of these two seats, extremely likely to be won by Democrats,[161] would have a significant effect on the nationwide partisan battle for control of the Senate. The D.C. statehood bill may have to overcome a filibuster, which would be unlikely to pass as some Democrats such as Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema have indicated that they will not support ending the legislative filibuster, but some political observers suggest that abolishing the filibuster may not be required.

In addition, a referendum on Puerto Rico's status was held on November 3, 2020. A majority (52.52%) of voters chose statehood.[162] It is also plausible that the 117th Congress will grant statehood to Puerto Rico. The 2020 platforms of both the Democratic[163] and Republican parties[164] (identical to the 2016 Republican Party platform as the party's National Committee readopted it by a resolution on August 22, 2020) express support for Puerto Rico's right to determine the future of its status. Both seats would likely be filled also in special elections during the 2022 election cycle. Unlike the District of Columbia, the partisan lean of Puerto Rico is somewhat unclear. While Latino Americans of Puerto Rican descent tend to vote for Democrats, many argue that Puerto Rico's heavily Catholic population[165] will result in Puerto Rico agreeing with the Republican Party on many social issues like abortion, religion in schools, and same-sex marriage.[166] In addition, Puerto Rico's elected non-voting member of the House of Representatives, Jenniffer González, has served leadership positions in the Republican Party.

The incumbent shadow senators from D.C. and Puerto Rico may possibly run in these races. The D.C. shadow senators are Democrats Mike Brown and Paul Strauss. Their Puerto Rican counterparts are New Progressive Republican Zoraida Fonalledas and Democrat Carlos Romero Barceló.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_United_States_Senate_elections