AMERICA admitted Alaska and Hawaii as its 49th and 50th states in 1959. Ever since, people have speculated on what (or where) could be the 51st, but the country has now gone 57 years without inducting a new one—the longest such pause in America’s history. That a new state has not been forthcoming is not for lack of trying. The most likely bet has always been on Puerto Rico, a self-governing United States territory. The island held its first referendum on statehood in 1967, and has held three more since. The most recent, in 2012, was inconclusive (another is planned, though it is as yet unscheduled). Puerto Rico’s formidable debt crisis may bring the issue to a head: statehood would open up many new avenues to deal with its creditors.
Another contender, though less likely, is the District of Columbia (Washington, DC). As the nation’s capital, its legal status is unusual. Unlike Puerto Ricans, DC residents must pay federal taxes and get to vote for the president—as in any of the 50 states—but they share the Puerto Ricans' lack of other privileges offered by statehood, such as voting representation in Congress. The District’s current mayor, Muriel Bowser, has taken bolder steps towards statehood in recent weeks. On March 18th, a judge ruled in her favour allowing the city to pass a budget on its own for the first time. On April 15th she revealed plans for a (non-binding) statehood referendum in November.
While Puerto Rico or DC may indeed one day become the 51st state (designs for a new national flag displaying 51 stars have already been proposed), the term has also become a proxy for the extension of American power abroad. Similar to the multitude of individuals to have been branded with the “fifth Beatle” moniker, the term "51st state" has been applied to myriad regions and countries the world over, as an analysis of Google search-traffic shows. In some cases, it reflects the close alignment between America and its allies like Israel or Britain; in others, such as Iraq or North Korea, it implies the threat of annexation to the American sphere of influence. Most peculiar perhaps, Alaska and Hawaii themselves appear regularly in searches, exposing a miscount or confusion on behalf of a good number of intrepid web explorers.