Miss National Sweetheart is a United States

beauty pageant A beauty pageant is a competition that has traditionally focused on judging and ranking the physical attributes of the contestants. Pageants have now evolved to include inner beauty, with criteria covering judging of personality, intelligence, ...

created in 1941 where runners-up from the

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...

state pageants are invited to

Hoopeston, Illinois Hoopeston () is a city in Grant Township, Vermilion County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 4,915. History Hoopeston was laid out in 1871. It was named for Thomas Hoopes, one of the men who offered lan ...

to compete for the title of Miss National Sweetheart, and the name of the title held by the winner of that pageant. The event, which has no official ties to the Miss America Organization, is sponsored by the Hoopeston

Jaycees The United States Junior Chamber, also known as the Jaycees, JCs or JCI USA, is a leadership training, service organization and civic organization for people between the ages of 18 and 40. It is a branch of Junior Chamber International (JCI) ...

and is held on Labor Day weekend in conjunction with the town's revered annual Sweetcorn Festival. Most contestants placed first runner-up in their state pageant, however second and other runners-up are invited if the first runner-up chooses not to attend. The winner of the Miss National Sweetheart title receives a $1,200 scholarship and a pendant shaped like an ear of corn. Winning this title does not guarantee that a contestant will win a Miss America state title, but since 1980, five Miss National Sweetheart winners have gone on to win both their state and the Miss America title. Since 1970 there have been nine Miss America titleholders who have competed in the National Sweetheart pageant. In 2016, the Miss America organization officially disassociated itself with the Miss National Sweetheart Organization. Miss America state pageant contestants were prohibited from competing. The 2022 National Sweetheart Pageant was held on September 4, 2022. The current titleholder is Miss Georgia Sweetheart, Savannah Jo Stevens.

Winners

References

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External links

Official website
Beauty pageants in the United States 1941 establishments in the United States American awards Miss America Vermilion County, Illinois Junior Chamber International