Nia Franklin Wins Miss America 2019 Title
- Miss New York, Nia Franklin wins the Miss America 2019 title.
- In a ceremony organized in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Sunday, 9th September, Franklin was crowned the winner of the pageant.
- Miss Connecticut, Bridget Oei was announced the first runner-up of the competition.
- Nia Franklin is the 7th Miss America winner representing New York, the most for any state which also includes the first African-American winner Vanessa Williams who was crowned the title in 1983.
Miss New York Nia Franklin has been crowned the 92nd Miss America at Sunday's event in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Bridget Oei, Miss Connecticut was named the first runner-up in the pageant.
Franklin took the stage to put her words after her win where she said,
It took a lot of perseverance to get here. I want to thank my beautiful family, my mom and my dad, who is a survivor of cancer.
The North Carolina-native Franklin is a trained Opera Singer, who earned her master's degree in music composition from UNC School of the Arts.
Franklin described how music helped her in finding her identity. She said,
I grew up in a predominately Caucasian school and there was only five percent minority, and I felt out of place so much because of the color of my skin.
She added,
But growing up, I found my love of arts, and through music that helped me to feel positive about myself and about who I was.
Franklin is the seventh winner of the Miss America pageant representing New York including the first African-American winner Vanessa Williams who has crowned the title in 1983. Apparently, New York has the most winners in the Organization's history.
The Miss America Organization faced several controversies last year after which the organization was renamed Miss America 2.0. The controversies hit the organization after the Huffington Post revealed emails which showed former CEO Sam Haskell talking to the competitors in misogynist language. Shortly after, Haskell resigned from the post followed by the organization's president and board chair.
Following the resignation, former Miss America, Gretchen Carlson became the chair and Regina Hopper became president and CEO of the organization.
