As the pageant world tries to find its stiletto-heeled footing in a modern landscape, two former winners within the Miss USA Organization have come forward to announce they are stepping down from their titles and are no longer affiliated with the group. Last week, Miss Teen USA 2023 UmaSofia Srivastava posted the official resignation of her title and crown to Instagram. In her statement, the New Jersey teen offered a vague explanation for her departure, noting the move was necessary because her “personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization.” Though Srivastava’s sudden abdication was strange on its own, the timing was even stranger considering her resignation came just days after Miss USA 2023 Noelia Voigt returned her own crown. All of which is to say that something is afoot at the notorious pageant company once owned by Donald Trump.
“After months of grappling with the decision, I have made the choice to resign from the title of Miss Teen USA 2023. I am grateful for all the support from my family, my state directors, my sister queens, and the fans who have cheered me on since I won my state title,” Srivastava wrote. She added that “I will always look back on my time as Miss NJ Teen USA fondly, and the experience of representing my state as a first generation, Mexican-Indian American at the national level was fulfilling in itself” and that “this was certainly not how I saw my reign coming to a close.”
In a statement posted to Instagram shortly after Srivastava’s, the Miss Teen USA Organization wrote that they “respect and support UmaSofia’s decision to step down from her duties,” adding that “the well-being of our titleholders is a top priority.”
Two days earlier, Miss USA Noelia Voigt posted her own statement to Instagram, announcing that she would be giving up her title while emphasizing the need for better mental health and the ability to advocate for herself. “In life, I strongly value the importance of making decisions that feel best for you and your mental health,” she wrote. Per USA Today, some internet users pointed out that the first letters of each sentence in Voigt’s statement spell out “I AM SILENCED,” though the first letters of the last sentences spell a nonsensical “HIP.” Voigt was one of the first to comment on the former Miss Teen USA’s post, writing, “I LOVE YOU! So proud of you my angel.”
In a statement emailed to USA Today, the Miss USA Organization said, “We respect and support former Miss USA Noelia Voigt’s decision to step down from her duties. The well-being of our titleholders is a top priority, and we understand her need to prioritize herself at this time.”
Voigt doesn’t seem to feel that the respect is mutual. NBC News reported that in her resignation letter, she accused the pageant’s CEO and president, Laylah Rose, of not taking an incident of sexual harassment seriously. Voigt alleges in the letter that during a Christmas event last year, she was left alone in a car with a man who “made several inappropriate statements to me about his desire to enter into a relationship with me.” She claims that when she brought up the incident to Rose, the CEO told her: “We cannot prevent people saying things to you at public appearances, it is, unfortunately, part of the role you’re in as a public figure.”
Voigt also claims that “there is a toxic work environment within the Miss USA organization that, at best, is poor management and, at worst, is bullying and harassment.” She specifically accuses Rose of speaking negatively about her to others in the organization. “I have heard that comments have ranged from her describing me as difficult to work with for various untrue reasons to weaponizing my mental-health struggles brought on by my experience as Miss USA 2023, calling me ‘mentally ill’ in a derogatory way, to expressing that she hoped I would get hit in the face by a baseball at an event where I would throw out the first pitch at a baseball game,” Voigt wrote. New York Post sources claim that Srivastava also resigned because of “harmful workplace conditions.”
Appearing on Good Morning America following the resignations, Voigt’s mother, Jackeline, described seeing her daughter after the Christmas incident. “I saw Noelia so stressed out, and I said, ‘What happened?’ and she said, ‘Mom, get in the car,’” Voigt recalled. “He told Noelia, ‘Are you into old men with money?’ and made Noelia very, very uncomfortable.” Jackeline wouldn’t say if her daughter’s Instagram post intentionally had a secret message, but when asked if she feels like Stephanie is being silenced, she said, “She is, and she would be the rest of her life if this NDA is not [lifted].” Meanwhile, Srivastava’s mom, Barbara, who joined Voigt on GMA, said: “The job of their dreams turned out to be a nightmare. We could not continue this charade. The girls decided to step down and give [up] their dream of a lifetime — a crown, a national title. Why would two girls decide to give that up?”
Miss USA subsequently named Savannah Gankiewicz — Miss Hawaii and the runner-up from the pageant last year — as Voigt’s successor. In an Instagram post, Rose described Gankiewicz as “a true representation of vision, intelligence and compassion.” Meanwhile, over the weekend, the Miss Teen USA runner-up, Stephanie Skinner, turned down an offer to take on the role, telling “Page Six” that she, “didn’t feel like it was the right decision considering all the circumstances.”
The chaos unfolding within Miss USA comes on the heels of new ownership. Rose took over the Miss USA brand as president and CEO in August, nearly a year after previous leadership was accused of showing favoritism to a prior winner. According to WWD, Rose is also CEO of the VIP Pageantry television network, owns a clothing brand called Laylah Rose Couture, and is a member of the U.S. National Committee for U.N. Women, which is dedicated to promoting gender equality. “My goal as the head of this organization is to inspire women to always create new dreams, have the courage to explore it all, and continue to preserve integrity along the way,” Rose said in a statement last year.
We have reached out to Miss USA and Miss Teen USA for additional comment regarding both Voigt’s and Srivastava’s resignations, as well as the accusations in Voigt’s resignation letter, and will update this post when we hear back.
This post has been updated.
