Miss New York is now Miss America. Mallory Hagan, 23, was crowned Miss America 2013 on Saturday night ahead of Miss South Carolina Ali Rogers and Miss Oklahoma Alicia Clifton.
Hagan won this year’s competition by doing a tap dance to James Brown’s “Get Up Off Of That Thing” and stunning judges in a black string bikini. Hagan also talked about gun control and the Newton school shooting during the Q&A part of the show.
“I don’t think the proper way to fight violence is with violence. I think the proper way is to educate people on guns and the ways we can use them properly. We can lock them up, we can have gun safety classes, we can have a longer waiting period.”
The Washington Post notes that Williams is the first winner from New York since 1984 when Vanessa Williams became the first black contestant to win Miss America. Hagan is the first woman from Brooklyn to win the award.
Hagan, who is currently studying Advertising, Marketing and Communications at the Fashion Institute of Technology, will receive a $50,000 college scholarship for winning the competition.
Here are some photos of Miss America 2013.
Mallory Hagan’s victory comes just a few weeks after Olivia Culpo , Miss United States, won the Miss Universe Pageant .
