Miss USA 2007

Miss USA 2007 was the 56th Miss USA pageant, held at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California on March 23, 2007, after two weeks of events and preliminary competition. The winner of the pageant was Rachel Smith of Tennessee.
The pageant was broadcast live on NBC from the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California one month earlier than the 2006 pageant. This was the second time that the pageant was held at this venue; it was previously held there in 2004, when Shandi Finnessey of Missouri was crowned Miss USA 2004. The host hotel was the Wilshire Grand.
Delegates arrived in Los Angeles on March 8, 2007, and were involved in two weeks of rehearsals and events prior to the final show. The preliminary competition were held on March 19, 2007, where all 51 contestants competed in swimsuit and evening gown, with the personal interview competition being held in private the previous day. This was the first time in recent years that the presentation show was held in the hotel ballroom, rather than at the location of the final competition.
During the final show on March 23, the fifteen delegates with the highest average score from the preliminary competition were announced. The top fifteen competed in the swimsuit competition, and the top ten competed in evening gown. The composite score was shown after each round of competition for the first time since 2002.
At the conclusion of the final night of competition, outgoing titleholder Tara Conner crowned Rachel Smith of Tennessee as the new Miss USA. Smith was the third consecutive former Miss Teen USA delegate to win the title and the second woman from Tennessee. Coincidentally, both Smith and Conner had competed together at Miss Teen USA 2002.
Selection of contestants
One delegate from each state was chosen in state pageants held from June to December 2006. The first state pageant was Texas, held on June 25, 2006, and the final pageants were Kansas and Hawaii, held on December 17, 2006.
Two contestants were replaced by their first runners-up:
Helen Salas was awarded the Miss Nevada USA 2007 title on December 21, 2006, when the original winner, Katie Rees, was dethroned after the publication of racy photographs. Salas was originally the first runner-up to Ms. Rees in the Miss Nevada USA 2007 pageant which had taken place on October 8, 2006.
Erin Abrahamson was awarded the Miss New Jersey USA 2007 title on January 15, 2007, when the original winner, Ashley Harder, resigned due to pregnancy. Pageant rules prohibit titleholders from competing while pregnant. Abrahamson was originally the first runner-up to Harder in the New Jersey pageant.
For the first time in the history of the pageant, eleven former Miss Teen USA delegates competed in the pageant. Initially only nine held titles, but the number increased to eleven after two titleholders resigned and former Teen USA delegates succeeded them.
Delegates
The Miss USA 2007 delegates are:
Alabama - Rebecca Moore
Alaska - Blair Chenoweth
Arizona - Courtney Barnas
Arkansas - Kelly George
California - Meagan Tandy
Colorado - Keena Bonella
Connecticut - Melanie Mudry
Delaware - Nicole Bosso
District of Columbia - Mercedes Lindsay
Florida - Jenna Edwards
Georgia - Brittany Swann
Hawaii - Chanel Wise
Idaho - Amanda Rammell
Illinois - Mia Heaston
Indiana - Jami Stallings
Iowa - Dani Reeves
Kansas - Cara Gorges
Kentucky - Michelle Banzer
Louisiana - Elizabeth McNulty
Maine - Erin Good
Maryland - Michaé Holloman
Massachusetts - Despina Delios
Michigan - Kelly Best
Minnesota - Alla Ilushka
Mississippi - Jalin Wood
Missouri - Amber Seyer
Montana - Stephanie Trudeau
Nebraska - Geneice Wilcher
Nevada - Helen Salas
New Hampshire - Laura Silva
New Jersey - Erin Abrahamson
New Mexico - Casey Messer
New York - Gloria Almonte
North Carolina - Erin O'Kelley
North Dakota - Rachel Mathson
Ohio - Anna Melomud
Oklahoma - Caitlin Simmons
Oregon - Sharitha McKenzie
Pennsylvania - Samantha Johnson
Rhode Island - Danielle Lacourse
South Carolina - Ashley Zais
South Dakota - Suzie Heffernan
Tennessee - Rachel Smith
Texas - Magen Ellis
Utah - Heather Anderson
Vermont - Jessica Comolli
Virginia - Lauren Barnette
Washington - LeiLani Jones
West Virginia - Kasey Montgomery
Wisconsin - Caitlin Morrall
Wyoming - Robyn Johnson
See also
Miss USA 2006
Miss Teen USA 2007
Miss Universe 2007
References
External links
Miss USA official website
2007
March 2007 events in the United States
2007 beauty pageants
2007 in California