I'm writing this post on the heels of seeing two fabulous titleholders leave organizations that are considered to be 'reputable pageants'. I find it very interesting when titleholders resign because having been a titleholder, it can say a lot about the organization. Let's explore some possibilities:
1. The titleholder felt mistreated in some way. Looking at a recent Miss Universe country/program, this makes the second titleholder to consecutively resign after the national pageant. Something is clearly happening within that organization to make titleholders leave. We also see this with a recent Miss Earth situation. These are two major pageants - this is not ok.
2. The titleholder had another opportunity. Realistically - life happens. Maybe they had the opportunity to go to school somewhere that would change their availability or eligibility. Maybe they had the opportunity to become a mom or change jobs.
3. Ok, no one is talking about this, but I'm going to say it: the titleholder was not that interested in the first place. Frankly, they took the opportunity away from someone who would enjoy representing that area or cause for a full year (well, took away their crowning moment, opportunity to compete at the national/international/state program, etc). This is not ok either. If you do not want the job, don't apply for it.
From the director side of things, representatives are crowned because they promise (at least they do in the interview room, in front of the judges) to represent the program in the community, to help market it, and to come back next year to crown their successor. When titleholders leave or resign, it puts the program in a bad place for the next year.
As we discussed above, yes, there are several reasons why one may consider leaving a program, but if you are considering it, please make sure it does not make you look like a crown chaser or a sore loser.
