SERENE QUEEN WOMAN LADY
QUEEN WOMAN LADYOF THE STATES

2026 · Miami · 51 delegates

Results

Every place at the Queen Woman Lady of the States 2026, a simulated pageant: Nevada won, Oklahoma was 1st runner-up, and 51 delegates competed in Miami. A delegate's score is her final average in the top five, her rounds' average in the rest of the top ten, and her preliminaries' average for everyone else.

PlaceDelegationDelegateAfter prelimsScore
WinnerNevadaSharolyn Schmidt2nd8.13
1st runner-upOklahomaVirginia Sharpe1st8.05
2nd runner-upArkansasSari Ayala4th7.83
3rd runner-upLouisianaEileen Bauer8th7.78
4th runner-upTexasBrynn Walton3rd7.72
Top 10CaliforniaTamara Zimmerman6th7.90
Top 10IowaAmerica Boyd7th7.90
Top 10UtahStarla Flowers5th7.83
Top 10North CarolinaAlethea Wilkins10th7.80
Top 10DelawareJaunita Bridges9th7.53
11thColoradoPatti Sweet11th7.55
12thNorth DakotaTammara Logan12th7.53
13thDistrict of ColumbiaInge Duncan13th7.47
14thMissouriLori Manning14th7.45
15thGeorgiaSabina Landry15th7.42
16thWashingtonTalia Floyd16th7.25
17thKansasCinderella Higgins17th7.22
18thHawaiiGrace Griffin18th7.20
19thNew YorkCherie Bruce19th7.17
20thMontanaBrandy Barnett20th7.15
21stMarylandJanella Ayers21st7.15
22ndWyomingLeandra Diaz22nd7.12
23rdIllinoisGeralyn Quinn23rd7.13
24thVirginiaCarley Briggs24th7.10
25thAlaskaAdina Walters25th7.10
26thAlabamaIngeborg Horn26th7.07
27thWisconsinJohana Douglas27th7.08
28thOregonLorette Wade28th7.00
29thNew MexicoAnika Patrick29th7.00
30thNebraskaStevie Barry30th6.92
31stArizonaMaricel Weeks31st6.92
32ndSouth DakotaCarlie Roach32nd6.83
33rdConnecticutShelba Peterson33rd6.78
34thNew HampshireDovie Nolan34th6.75
35thSouth CarolinaRenee Wagner35th6.75
36thMaineToshia Merritt36th6.70
37thVermontArlette LeBlanc37th6.65
38thMinnesotaErika Vargas38th6.60
39thOhioJohanne Nielsen39th6.55
40thFloridaAdelaida Calderon40th6.53
41stRhode IslandEarlean Harris41st6.47
42ndMississippiLourie Marks42nd6.28
43rdMassachusettsYolonda Curry43rd6.25
44thMichiganMegan Franco44th6.22
45thTennesseeMatha Craft45th6.15
46thIndianaSarai O'Brien46th6.13
47thPennsylvaniaKortney Chavez47th6.13
48thWest VirginiaCarletta Marsh48th6.00
49thIdahoWava Brewer49th5.90
50thNew JerseyCalandra Holman50th5.67
51stKentuckyKrissy Prince51st5.48

Special awards

Best TalentSharolyn Schmidt, Nevada

Sharolyn Schmidt of Nevada, for Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C-sharp minor, at 9.7. She has asked that the piano travel with her to the Earth.

PhotogenicBrynn Walton, Texas

Brynn Walton of Texas, for the photograph taken one second before anyone told her it was being taken.

CongenialityTamara Zimmerman, California

Tamara Zimmerman of California, on a tiebreak with Sharolyn Schmidt of Nevada, who already had enough.

The final interview

The panel asked the top five one question: What does your hometown have to teach the rest of the world?

4th runner-up · 6.30Brynn Walton, Texas
Teach? I only substituted once, and the goldfish was fine. Studies show people who know their neighbors live longer. Ours live forever. Thank you. The rest is history, which I failed twice.
3rd runner-up · 6.80Eileen Bauer, Louisiana
That you can never go home again, which is why I still live there. Our town has eleven porches per block, which is the correct number. Thank you, and be gentle with the person you were at sixteen.
2nd runner-up · 7.50Sari Ayala, Arkansas
Quiet. We have had the same silence for ninety years. A study found that a wave from a stranger adds a minute to your day. Thank you. Always be yourself, unless you can be quieter.
1st runner-up · 6.60Virginia Sharpe, Oklahoma
Patience. Our one traffic light has been yellow since 1998. My hometown is fine, thank you, it is the rest of the world I worry about. Whatever happens, I am going home to a dog who voted for me.
Winner · 7.50Sharolyn Schmidt, Nevada
The early bird gets the worm, so we start at 3 a.m. Nobody is happy. When Grandpa forgot our names, the whole street started wearing name tags. I am finished. My therapist says I am also finishing.