Noelia Voigt of Utah was crowned the new Miss USA in Reno, Nevada, at the culmination of the 2023 pageant at the Grand Sierra Resort on Friday night, broadcast live on the CW Network. Savannah Gankiewicz of Hawaii placed as first-runner-up.
Voigt, 23, beat out 50 other titleholders at the pageant. At the start of the television competition, the field was narrowed to 20 finalists, and cut further to just five \u2014 Voigt, Gankiewicz, Jasmine Daniels of Pennsylvania, Lluvia Alzate of Texas and Alexis Loomans of Wisconsin \u2014 after the requisite swimwear and evening gown rounds.
Asked what she would contribute to the Miss Universe Organization as a \u201cbrand ambassador\u201d and Miss USA in the final Q&A round, Voigt touted being a \u201cbilingual Venezuelan-American,\u201d and promised she would connect with diverse communities across the United States.
Judges included Vivica A. Fox, former \u201cReal Housewife\u201d Luann de Lesseps and beauty vlogger Patrick Starrr.
The pageant aimed to offer \u201ca modern and progressive approach to a 70-year-old tradition,\u201d said President and CEO of the Miss USA Organization Laylah Rose in a statement released in early September. Following a recent rule change implemented by the Miss Universe Organization, this year\u2019s Miss USA featured the\u2002first married state titleholder \u2014 Juliana Morehouse-Locklear of Maine. (Morehouse-Locklear, the daughter of a contestant in the 1994 Miss USA pageant, did not advance to the top
Voigt succeeds the 2022 Miss USA, Morgan Romano of North Carolina. Romano herself took over the title from R\u2019Bonney Gabriel, of Texas, who was crowned the 2022 Miss Universe in January.
Gabriel\u2019s win at the 2022 Miss USA pageant was marred by claims made by some of her fellow contestants that the pageant had been \u201crigged\u201d in her favor.
In the weeks after her crowning in October 2022, Miss USA\u2019s parent company, the Miss Universe Organization, opened an investigation and suspended then-Miss USA national director Crystle Stewart \u2014 winner of the 2008 Miss USA pageant \u2014 and her company, Miss Brands.
Gabriel, Stewart and other \u001f\u001f\u001fofficials all refuted the allegations. \u201cThere was no unfair advantage and nothing was rigged,\u201d Gabriel told E! News at the time, while Stewart said in a statement that, \u201cThe last thing I would ever want to do is discredit or deny the contestants an equal opportunity to a fair competition. I would never jeopardize my dream of running an organization that empowers these young women.\u201d
In August, the pageant announced the end of its partnership with Stewart. In a statement confirming that a \u201cthorough and extensive investigation\u201d of accusations leveled against the pageant found them to be false, Miss USA said that, \u201cafter much discussion and consideration, (the Miss Universe Organization) and Crystle were unable to reach an agreement as to Crystle and Miss Brand\u2019s continuing involvement\u2026 Crystle has decided to leverage the success she has had with the Miss USA Organization to pursue other entrepreneurial passions.\u201d
On Thursday night, also at the Grand Sierra Resort, 16-year-old UmaSofia Srivastava, of New Jersey, was crowned Miss Teen USA. Stephanie Skinner, 19, of New York, placed as first-runner-up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n