The Miss Virginia USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

in the

Miss USA Miss USA is an American beauty pageant that has been held annually since 1952 to select the entrant from United States in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operated both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA, until 2020, ...

pageant. Virginia has been only moderately successful in terms of number of semi-finalists. They have had two Miss USAs. They are one of only four states to have had two Miss USAs in succession (the others being

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, and

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

). Virginia's greatest success came from the late 1960s to early 1980s. Virginia should have had the first Miss USA crown in 1954, as Ellen Whitehead finished 1st runner-up, and Miss USA 1954,

Miriam Stevenson Miriam Jacqueline Stevenson (born July 4, 1933) is an American television host, actress, former model and beauty queen who was crowned Miss Universe 1954. She was the first American to win the title, and had previously been crowned Miss USA 195 ...

, became

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stre ...

1954. However, there was no rule until the 1960s that the 1st runner-up became Miss USA after the winner won Miss Universe. If that was true, 2nd runner-up,

Miss New York USA The Miss New York USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of New York in the Miss USA pageant. It is directed by D&D Productions. The current titleholder is Heather Nunez of New York City was crowned on Jun ...

, Karin Hultman would have become Miss USA 1954, as Whitehead was disqualified due to being underage. Ten Miss Virginia USA winners have previously held the

Miss Virginia Teen USA The Miss Virginia Teen USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Virginia in the Miss Teen USA pageant. Virginia is one of the more successful states at Miss Teen USA, and is placed in the top twenty in te ...

title and competed at

Miss Teen USA Miss Teen USA is a beauty pageant formerly run, since 1983, by the Miss Universe Organization for girls aged 14–19. Unlike its sister pageants Miss Universe, which currently broadcasts on Fox and Miss USA, this pageant is webcast on the Mis ...

and three were previously competed in other states (

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

), at thirteen.

also currently holds the record for the most Miss Teen USA state winners to win a

state title from the same state. Two Miss winners have also competed at

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...

. The current titleholder is Kailee Horvath of

Ashburn __NOTOC__ Ashburn may refer to: Places Canada *Ashburn, Ontario United States *Ashburn, Georgia *Ashburn, Chicago, Illinois, a community area **Ashburn (Metra), a Metra station serving the area * Ashburn, Missouri * Ashburn, Virginia, an unincorpo ...

was crowned on April 16, 2022, at Hylton Performing Arts Center in Manassas. She represented Virginia for the title of Miss USA 2022.

Gallery of titleholders

File:Donna Dixon at the 62nd Annual Academy Awards.jpg,

Donna Dixon Donna Lynn Dixon is an American film and television actress, best known for playing Sonny Lumet in the TV series ''Bosom Buddies'' (1980-1982). Biography Dixon was born in Alexandria, Virginia, to Earl Dixon. Her father owned a nightclub in ...

(pictured in 1990), Miss Virginia USA 1976 and Miss District of Columbia World 1977 File:Julielaipply.jpg,

Julie Laipply Julie Laipply is an American television personality, speaker and author who is recognized for her work promoting youth leadership development. Laipply won the Miss Virginia USA 2002 title in a state pageant held in late 2001. She represented Vir ...

, Miss Virginia USA 2002 File:Kristi Glakas headshot.png, Kristi Lauren Glakas, Miss Virginia USA 2004 File:Amber Copley 2006.jpg, Amber Copley, Miss Virginia USA 2006 File:Samantha Casey.jpg, Samantha Casey, Miss Virginia USA 2010 File:Catherine Muldoon 2012.jpg, Catherine Muldoon, Miss Virginia USA 2012 File:Desiree Williams.jpg, Desiree Williams,

Miss Virginia The Miss Virginia competition is a scholarship pageant for women, with the titleholder representing Virginia in the Miss America pageant. The competition was founded in 1953 as a scholarship contest for young women, although women had represente ...

2013 and Miss Virginia USA 2016

Results summary

*Miss USAs:

Wendy Dascomb Wendy Jane Dascomb (born January 7, 1950) is an American model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 1969. As Miss USA, she represented the United States at Miss Universe 1969, placing in the top fifteen. Dascomb had previously b ...

(1969),

Deborah Shelton Deborah Dale Shelton (born November 21, 1948) is an American actress, beauty queen, and songwriter who was Miss USA and appeared on ''Dallas'' for three seasons and a special guest return in 2013. Pageants In 1970, Shelton competed in the Miss V ...

(1970) *1st runners-up: Ellen Whitehead (1954),

Patricia Southall Patricia "Pat" Annette Smith (née Southall; born December 17, 1970) is an American founder and spokesperson of Treasure You, ex-wife of comedian Martin Lawrence and the wife of former Dallas Cowboys running back and Pro Football Hall of Famer Emm ...

(1994) *2nd runners-up: Samantha Casey (2010) *4th runners-up: Sheryl Lynn Herring (1977) *Top 10: Meredith Blankenship (1998), Kellie Lightbourn (1999),

Lauren Barnette Lauren Elizabeth Barnette (born April 10, 1985) is an American model and beauty pageant contestant from Wise, Virginia who has competed in the Miss Teen USA pageant and competed for the Miss USA title in 2007. Barnette won her first pageant title ...

(2007), Desiree Williams (2016) *Top 11/12: Brenda Joyce Miller (1971), Linda McKee (1975), Robin Shadle (1978), Betsy Bott (1979), Pam Hutchens (1981),Sondra Dee Jones (1982), Marsha Ralls (1987), Brandi Bottorff (1992), *Top 15/16/20: Elizabeth "Betty" Karen Kallmyer (1967), Laurie Burke (1968), Maegan Phillips (2009), Arielle Rosmarino (2014),

Laura Puleo The Miss Virginia USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Virginia in the Miss USA pageant. Virginia has been only moderately successful in terms of number of semi-finalists. They have had two Miss USAs. ...

(2015), Christina Thompson (2021) Virginia holds a record of 24 placements at

Awards

*Miss Congeniality: Kimberly Nicewonder (1989) *Miss Photogenic: Elizabeth "Betty" Karen Kallmyer (1967),

(1970), Brenda Joyce Miller (1971), Sondra Dee Jones (1982),

(1994), Audra Wilks (1997) * Best in Swimsuit:

(1994)

Winners

;Color key

References

External links

Official Website
{{Miss USA state

Virginia culture Women in Virginia