'House of Cards' season 5 air date news, rumors: Show to feature plot inspired by recent elections?; season 5 could be released in February or March 2017

"House of Cards" season 5 may be affected more by outside influences than in-story drama.YouTube/ Netflix US & Canada

Expect the fifth season of Netflix's hit series "House of Cards" to feature influences from the recent U.S. presidential elections wherein Republican bet Donald Trump emerged victorious over Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.

According to a report by News Everyday, the storyline may include two opponents for Kevin Spacey's character Frank Underwood and these characters will represent Trump and Clinton. However, for the show's twist, it could turn the tables and have the female candidate win instead.

Two actors have been added to the cast to play crucial roles in the series: Oscar nominee Patricia Clarkson and Campbell Scott. While the details concerning their roles still haven't been released, it is expected that both characters will have an impact on series, especially now that show creator Beau Williamson has turned over showrunning functions to Melissa James Gibson and Frank Pugliese, who have been with the show since its third season.

Now that Claire (Robin Wright) is in a relationship with Yates (Paul Sparks), it is expected that Frank will also "move on" with a romance of his own. However, his new affair may be more politically inclined than romantic.

Meanwhile, loyal ally Doug Stamper (Michael Kelly) is expected to deal with the aftermath of letting a man die in order to save Frank's life after an assassination attempt. It can be recalled in the previous season that Doug allowed a man to die so that Frank may have his liver to survive. 

Based on a report by the Inquisitr, Doug will become obsessed with the man's wife after the incident, perhaps in trying to atone for his sin. While buzz is loud that major characters will die in the upcoming season, Kelly has expressed his confidence in the show's writers to bring the show to the direction it needs to go.

"You lose characters that you love. We almost lost Frank, and I always have faith in the writers that no matter what road we go down, we're going to come back to what the show is," shared the actor.

"House of Cards" is rumored to premiere on February 24 or March 3, 2017, Den of Geek reported.