MOM ON TOP

First Mom Crowned Miss USA in Historic 75th Pageant

Miss Virginia is the first mom, first married woman, and first woman in her thirties to take the crown.

The 75th Miss USA pageant was a historic one. Miss Virginia, Justus Kelley, was crowned Miss USA on Thursday, making her the first mom, first married woman, and first woman in her thirties to win. The pageant changed its rules in 2023 so that being over 28, being married, or being a mother no longer disqualified a woman from entering the pageant. The organization also underwent major leadership changes as winners stepped down and declined to attend events, citing supposed value misalignment. The old rules were a longstanding source of controversy: in 1957, Mary Leona Gage was crowned Miss USA, but after organizers discovered she was married with two children, she was stripped of the title. Kelley is therefore considered the first officially recognized mother to hold the Miss USA crown. This year’s pageant winner reportedly took home a prize package valued at more than $685,000—a $150,000 salary, a Range Rover, a one-year lease in a luxury Miami apartment, a Westgate Vacation Home, a $30,000 Miss Universe wardrobe, and more.