Alma Cooper, Miss Michigan USA, was named Miss USA 2024 on Sunday night at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
At the pageant, which was televised by The CW, Cooper received her crown from Miss USA 2023, Savannah Gankiewicz. Gankiewicz, the first runner-up for Miss USA last year, took over the title when Noelia Voigt resigned as Miss USA in May, citing mental health concerns.
Cooper is a second lieutenant and military intelligence officer in the U.S. Army, according to her bio on the Miss USA website. She graduated from the United States Military Academy and is working on a master’s degree in data science at Stanford University.
“She is passionate about addressing food insecurity in our country, and globally,” Cooper’s Miss USA bio says. “Her ultimate goal is to make healthy foods available to all people. Alma’s life motto is ‘Demand Excellence,’ which she inherited from her parents who forged a path toward their American dream.”
As Miss USA 2024, Cooper will move on to compete in the Miss Universe pageant later this year.
Alma Cooper, Miss USA 2024, competed in the pageant as Miss Michigan USA. Cooper appeared in swimsuit and evening gown events, and answered an on-stage question for the judges, before winning the crown.(Photos by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Cooper bested 50 other contestants for the Miss USA title, including Miss Alabama USA 2024, Diane Westhoven. Westhoven won the state title in June, competing as Miss Southern Plains. Westhoven, from Vestavia Hills, attends Auburn University and is studying to become a physician assistant. All contestants for Miss USA are the winners of pageants held earlier this year.
READ: Miss Alabama USA 2024: Miss Southern Plains wins the crown
Westhoven wasn’t among the top 20 contestants announced on Sunday, so she didn’t have a chance to compete in the televised swimsuit and evening gown competitions or answer a question on camera for the judges. (Miss USA doesn’t have a talent competition.) Earlier this week, however, Westhoven competed in a preliminary competition for Miss USA and participated in other pageant events.
The number of finalists was trimmed to a top 10, then to a top five before the winner was announced.
The top five finalists were:
Alma Cooper, Miss Michigan USA (winner).Connor Perry, Miss Kentucky USA (first runner-up).Danika Christopherson, Miss Oklahoma USA (second runner-up).Christell Foote, Miss Tennessee USA (third runner-up).Macy Hudson, Miss Ohio USA (fourth runner-up).
Cooper begins a yearlong reign as Miss USA. If she becomes the new Miss Universe, Cooper will cede the Miss USA title to Perry, the first runner-up.
Finals for a companion pageant, Miss Teen USA, were held on Thursday, also at the Peacock Theater. Addie Carver, who competed as Miss Mississippi Teen USA, was the winner of Miss Teen USA 2024.
Addie Carver, Miss Mississippi Teen USA, was crowned Miss Teen USA 2024 at the Peacock Theater on August 01, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.(Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
The Miss USA and Miss Teen USA organizations have been enmeshed in controversy over the last few months, after both winners for 2023 — Noelia Voigt (Miss USA) and UmaSofia Srivastava (Miss Teen USA) — resigned their titles in May. Voigt’s title was assumed by the first runner-up, Savannah Gankiewicz, who had a short reign as Miss USA for about three months. The first runner-up for Miss Teen USA in 2023, Stephanie Skinner, declined to take over the teen crown when Srivastava resigned, leaving the position open.
The double resignation was a first in Miss USA history, rocking the pageant world and resulting in a significant shadow over the Miss Universe organization, which owns both Miss USA and Miss Teen USA.
Voigt cited mental health concerns when she left her post as Miss USA, and later said a non-disclosure agreement with the pageant prevented her from elaborating on the reasons for her exit. Srivastava, the teen winner for 2023, resigned in solidarity with Voigt, saying my “personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization.”
The New York Times, CNN and other media outlets leaked an internal resignation letter Voigt had sent to Miss USA’s leadership, which included complaints of a “toxic work environment,” lack of support, mismanagement and bullying within the Miss USA organization. Followup reports by The New York Times and CNN detailed more complaints against the Miss USA organization and its CEO, Laylah Rose, who took over the Miss USA brand in August 2023.
Also, the mothers of the former Miss USA and Miss Teen USA winners, Jackeline Voigt and Barbara Srivastava, appeared on “Good Morning America” in mid-May, speaking out for their daughters and saying both had been disrespected, bullied and badly treated by the Miss USA organization. “The job of their dreams turned out to be a nightmare,” Barbara Srivastava said.
Rose, the CEO of Miss USA, released a public statement on May 30, defending the pageant and denying the allegations. “The allegations of sexual harassment, toxic environment and bullying are not true,” Rose’s statement said. “To be clear, such behavior is not accepted, and we can assure you that if such behavior ever occurred, we would take immediate steps to protect our titleholder and provide access to appropriate resources.”
The Miss USA and Miss Teen USA 2024 pageants proceeded in Los Angeles as planned, and the controversy wasn’t mentioned during Sunday’s broadcast. Voigt expressed support for the contestants this week via Instagram videos, offering them tips for staying calm and confident during the competition.
Judges for the Miss USA 2024 pageant were Anastasia Soare, Carole Gist, Lu Parker, Natasha Graziano, Scheana Shay, NJ Falk and Jojo Bragais. Hosts for the show were Keltie Knight and Garcelle Beauvais.
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Publish date : 2024-08-04 17:32:00
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