Miss USA has stated that it made “multiple attempts” to encourage the 2024 titleholder, Alma Cooper, to attend this year’s ceremony, despite knowing in advance that she would not be present. This situation has raised eyebrows due to Cooper’s unexpected criticism of the pageant.
Just hours before the 2025 Miss USA event began in Nevada, Cooper, 23, shared on Instagram that she would not be there to crown her successor.
“As the new owners and leaders of the Miss USA organization, we have made numerous attempts to welcome Miss Cooper to the 2025 Miss USA pageant, crown her successor, and end her reign with the dignity that comes with her title. We respect her decision not to attend and wish her the best,” said Tom Brodeur, the president of Miss USA, in a statement.
A representative from Miss USA indicated they were already aware that Cooper wouldn’t come to the pageant.
“We invited Alma, but we knew in advance that she would not be able to attend long last night,” a representative explained.
“We would have loved to have her with us,” they added, making it clear that, “She will always be our 2024 Miss USA.”
Cooper didn’t elaborate much on her reasons for skipping the event.
“As I close this chapter, I do so knowing that I completed what I started with integrity and held my worth high like the crown I was honored to wear,” she mentioned in her Instagram post.
Cooper’s parents have kept quiet regarding her decision, with her mother, Oralia, not commenting, while her father, Stacey, expressed he wasn’t sure why she left home.
“I’m a hunter and a fisherman…I’m a military veteran…I think it’s great that she’s in Miss USA, but her mom knows all about it…My biggest concern is her finishing school. I’m a father, all I care about is her finishing school at Stanford,” Stacey told the media.
Cooper, a West Point graduate, is currently working toward a master’s degree in data science in California as a Knight-Hennessy Fellow.
A fellow beauty queen alluded to the difficulties Cooper experienced while holding the title of Miss USA.
“Alma has been defending her title on her own for the past 14 months,” noted Miss USA 2011 Alyssa Campanella on Instagram. “Alma has no team behind her. It’s impossible to be Miss USA without a team or a paycheck, but she was determined to keep going.”
Cooper had taken a break from graduate studies to focus on her responsibilities as Miss USA and engage in Army recruitment, as reported. Notably, she is the first active-duty military officer to earn the Miss USA title.
“Over the past year, I have done everything in my power to honor this prestigious title while also serving in office. [First Lieutenant] Cooper from the U.S. Army,” she stated.
This isn’t the first instance of controversy for Miss USA; in 2024, both the titleholder Noelia Vogt and Miss Teen USA Umasofia Srivastava stepped down from their positions.
