Cara Mund, 23, of Bismarck, North Dakota, United States was crowned Miss America 2018 in Atlantic City on September 10, 2017. In one of her onstage interviews, she criticized one of the decisions Donald Trump made as the U.S. president.
Trump has pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement, the climate accord aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming. Apparently, Mund is against this as she described it as “a bad decision.”
“Once we reject that, we take ourselves out of the negotiation table and that’s something that we really need to keep in mind,” Mund said. “There is evidence that climate change is existing, so whether you believe it or not, we need to be at that table, and I just think it’s a bad decision on behalf of the United States.”
In the talent portion of Miss America 2018, Mund performed a jazz dance to “The Way You Make Me Feel” by the late Michael Jackson. She also looks up to “Harry Potter” star Emma Watson for her work as an advocate for women’s rights in the United Nations.
Mund is the first Miss North Dakota to win Miss America. She is also the first contestant from North Dakota to reach the top five of the prestigious beauty pageant, which is more than nine decades old.
Inheriting the crown from Miss America 2017 Savvy Shields, Mund bested 50 other contestants from across the U.S. and the District of Columbia. The Miss America 2018 judges were Jordin Sparks, “Las Vegas” alum Molly Sims, “Craving You” singer Thomas Rhett, AfterBuzz TV CEO Maria Menounos, Miss America 2014 Nina Davuluri, Olympic gold medalist Tara Lipinski and PEOPLE Editor-in-Chief Jess Cagle.
The newly crowned Miss America 2018 graduated from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. She has also been accepted to law school at the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, USA.
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