Politics in the United States in 2021 was dominated by four major events and two non-events, setting the stage for what was likely to be an acrimonious 2022. The major events were the storming of the Capitol and the inauguration of a new President, both in January, the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August, and ongoing conflicts surrounding Covid-19. The non-events were the (non-)passage of Joe Biden's Build Back Better plan and national voting rights legislation. The continuing drama concerned investigations arising from the Capitol riot, Supreme Court reconsideration of established law about libel and abortion, and challenges to redistricting based on the 2020 census as well as other electoral legislation, all in the run-up to the 2022 election.