Eighteen States Still Waiting on Miss USA Crown, Texas Hoards Crowns Like Coupons
KEY POINTS
- •Miss USA began in 1952 but 18 states, including Alaska and Arizona, have never won the title outright.
- •Some states like Florida and Maryland inherited the crown due to Miss Universe wins or contestant scandals.
- •Several states, such as Delaware and Maine, have broken traditions recently by sending older or married contestants.
Since Miss USA launched in 1952, 18 unlucky states remain as crowned virgins despite pageant glamour. Alaska hasn’t won but proudly snagged Miss Congeniality four times recently—because hey, at least they’re nice. Arizona inherited the crown in 1980 only after Miss Universe stole the spotlight, and Florida had a three-way drama in 1967 where the second runner-up moonlighted as Miss USA due to disqualifications. Maryland crowned Mary Leona Gage in '57 but had to yank her crown when they found out she was married with kids, a scandal now old hat since 2023. Delaware made a top 11 in 2015 and boasted the oldest contestant at age 44 in 2025. Maine broke the marriage barrier in 2023 with its first married competitor. And yes, Georgia keeps trying since '93, and Indiana’s Alexis Lete took third runner-up honors as recently as 2020. Clearly, America’s beauty contest matrix comes with plot twists sharper than a tiara.
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(1 of 3)18 states have never won Miss USA since 1952, proving some places really specialize in forever coming in second—because who needs first when you’ve got congeniality trophies?
Turns out being Miss Congeniality is the participation trophy of pageants, and Alaska has a whole shelf of them.
If crowns were handed out for avoiding drama and scandal, Maryland would be a beauty pageant superpower.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 8/27/2026 | Author: Anneta Konstantinides
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