places in the united states that are not states right now, but might become the 51st state include the district of columbia, puerto rico, guam, the us virgin islands, american samoa, or the northern mariana islands. besides admitting a new state, another type of proposal has been to form a 51st (or even 52nd) state by dividing a current state, such as the most-populous state (and third-largest state, geographically) of california into two or even three states, or texas (the second-most populous) into four or five states.