Miss Illinois


The Miss Illinois program exists to provide personal and professional opportunities for young women and to promote their voices in culture, politics, and the community. The program provides a forum for today's young women to express their viewpoints, talents, and accomplishments to audiences during the telecast and to the public-at-large during the ensuing year. Almost all contestants have either received, or are in the process of earning, college or postgraduate degrees and utilize Miss America scholarship grants to further their educations.
The first "Miss Illinois" sent to the national pageant was Lois Delander who subsequently won the Miss America title. Including Delander, five Miss Illinois representatives have won the Miss America title.
Ariel Beverly of Chicago was crowned Miss Illinois 2019 on June 15, 2019 at Marion Cultural Arts & Civic Center in Marion, Illinois. She competed for the title of Miss America 2020 in December 2019.

Results summary

The following is a visual summary of the past results of Miss Illinois titleholders at the national Miss America pageants/competitions. The year in parentheses indicates the year of the national competition during which a placement and/or award was garnered, not the year attached to the contestant's state title.
Awards received by contestants competing as Miss Chicago at the national pageant are denoted with a "*".

Placements

Preliminary awards