The Miss America 2020 competition was held on Thursday, December 19, 2019. This was the 93rd
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 ...
pageant/competition, though the Miss America Organization celebrated its 99th anniversary in 2019. This discrepancy is due to national pageants not being held from 1928 to 1932 or in 1934 because of financial problems associated with the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
.
In May 2019, it was announced that the 2020 competition would be broadcast on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
after previously being aired on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
since 2011.
NBC previously aired Miss America pageants for more than two decades until ABC was selected to air the
Miss America 1998
Miss America 1998, the 71st Miss America pageant, was held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Saturday, September 13, 1997 and was televised by the ABC Network. ABC replaced NBC as the pageant's television home.
Results Place ...
pageant in September 1997.
This is also the first beauty pageant to be aired by NBC since the network terminated its contract with the
Miss Universe Organization
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 Str ...
in June 2015 over controversial remarks that were made by
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
during his
2016 presidential campaign.
In July 2019, it was announced that the 2020 competition would be held at the
Mohegan Sun
Mohegan Sun is an American casino, owned and operated by the Mohegan Tribe on of their reservation, along the banks of the Thames River in Uncasville, Connecticut. It has of gambling space.
It is in the foothills of southeastern Connecticut, ...
in
Uncasville, Connecticut
Uncasville is an area in the New England town, town of Montville, Connecticut, Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a Administrative divisions of Connecticut#Village, neighborhood, section of town, village in southeastern Montville, at the ...
on Thursday, December 19, 2019, making this the ninth edition of the competition that would not be held at
Boardwalk Hall
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, formerly known as the Historic Atlantic City Convention Hall, is a multi-purpose arena in Atlantic City in Atlantic County, New Jersey. It was Atlantic City's primary convention center until the opening of the Atlant ...
in
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497. .
Miss America 2019
The Miss America 2019 pageant/competition was the 92nd Miss America pageant, though the Miss America Organization celebrated its 98th anniversary in 2018. This discrepancy is due to national pageants not being held from 1928–1932 or in 1934 beca ...
,
Nia Franklin
Nia Imani Franklin (born July 27, 1993) is an American composer and beauty pageant titleholder. In June 2018, she was crowned Miss New York 2018. On September 9, 2018, she was crowned Miss America 2019 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, by the outgoin ...
of
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
* '' ...
, officially crowned
Camille Schrier
Camille Thomasina Schrier (; born June 30, 1995) is a Miss America titleholder and previous pageant titleholder. On June 22, 2019, she was crowned Miss Virginia 2019. On December 19, 2019, she was crowned Miss America 2020 in Uncasville, Connec ...
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 ...
as her successor at the end of the event.
Schrier's reign was originally to end in December 2020, but the reign will be extended due to outside factors, with the next pageant now scheduled for at least the end of 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
making it unfeasible to be held before 2020's end.
Overview
Organization of competition
The preliminary competition consisted of private interviews with judges (20% of preliminary score), on-stage interview (15%), talent competition (50%), and "social impact pitch" (15%).
Candidates will not be judged in an evening gown or swimsuit competition.
The fifteen candidates from the preliminary competition with the highest overall scores were announced during the televised event. For the top 15 finalists, their preliminary scores contributed to 25% of their final night score.
The top 15 was then immediately whittled down to the top 7 candidates (without any phase of competition being completed or televised).
Then the top 7 competed in on-stage "job interview"; the top 5 performed their respective talents; and the top 3 candidates presented their "social impact pitch" to the panel of judges.
These phases of competition contributed to 25%, 30%, and 20% of their final night score respectively.
The final two candidates then were asked the same question (alternating answering first) and given the chance to agree or give rebuttal to the other candidate's answer.
From this, the judges then determined the placements of the finalists.
Judges
Preliminary judges
On December 15–16, 2019, judges for the preliminary competition selected winners of the preliminary competitions as well as the top finalists for the final night of competition. The panel included composer and music producer, Anthony Barfield; model and lifestyle consultant, Holly Pelham Davis; and executive director for the Clinton Foundation, Stephanie S. Streett.
Final night judges
The panel of judges on the final night of competition on December 19, 2019, included actress,
Lauren Ash
Lauren Elizabeth Ash (born February 4, 1983) is a Canadian actress and comedian based in Los Angeles, but originally from Belleville, Ontario. Ash is best known among television audiences for her role as Dina Fox on the sitcom '' Superstore''. ...
; TV host,
Karamo Brown
Karamo Karega Brown (born November 2, 1980) is an American television host, reality television personality, author, actor, and activist. Brown began his career in 2004 on the MTV reality show '' The Real World: Philadelphia'', becoming the first ...
; and singer, songwriter, and actress,
Kelly Rowland
Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling girl ...
.
Results
Placements
Order of announcements
Top 15
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
Top 7
#
#
#
#
#
#
#
Top 5
#
#
#
#
#
Top 3
#
#
#
Top 2
#
#
Awards
Preliminary awards
Equity and Justice Scholarship awards
In September 2019, the Miss America Organization announced that a new scholarship, the Equity and Justice Scholarship, will be awarded at the 2020 competition to the candidate, "who best exemplifies inclusion and acceptance of these principles in her social impact initiative."
Social Impact Initiative Scholarship awards
Formerly called “Quality of Life Award”
STEM Scholarship awards
Women in Business Scholarship awards
Other awards
Candidates
The Miss America 2020 candidates were:
Notes
References
{{Miss America state
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
2019 beauty pageants
December 2019 events in the United States
2019 in Connecticut