- StatefulSets should always count `.status.availableReplicas` at the correct time without a delay. This results in faster progress of StatefulSet rollout. ([#136097](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/136097), [@atiratree](https://github.com/atiratree)) [SIG Apps]

### Other (Cleanup or Flake)

- Validation now requires new StatefulSets with a `.spec.serviceName` field value to pass DNS1123 validation. Previously created StatefulSets with an invalid `.spec.serviceName` field value could not create any pods, and should be deleted.

- Sort runtime handlers list coming from the CRI runtime ([#135358](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/135358), [@harche](https://github.com/harche)) [SIG Node]
- StatefulSets should always count `.status.availableReplicas` at the correct time without a delay. This results in faster progress of StatefulSet rollout. ([#135428](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/135428), [@atiratree](https://github.com/atiratree)) [SIG Apps]

- Kube-controller-manager: Fixes a 1.34 regression, which triggered a spurious rollout of existing statefulsets when upgrading the control plane from 1.33 → 1.34. This fix is guarded by a `StatefulSetSemanticRevisionComparison` feature gate, which is enabled by default. ([#135087](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/135087), [@liggitt](https:/...