ENTERTAINMENT / ATTRACTIONS
Special Events
Queen Pageant
Competing in the Indiana State Fair Queen Pageant
Contestants: The Indiana State Fair Queen Pageant contestants are winners of their own county fair Queen Pageants. Therefore, an average of 88 county queens gather in Indianapolis each August to compete for the title of Miss Indiana State Fair. This year's contestants must be at least 18 years old as of June 1, 2014 and must not have reached her 21st birthday as of August 16, 2013 the first day of the 2013 Indiana State Fair Queen Pageant.
Requirements: A complete set of rules can be found in the Indiana State Fair Queen Pageant Terms and Conditions Brochure available from the Entertainment & Events Office.
Counties may select a queen/representative in any manner they choose, provided that young lady complies with the Indiana State Fair Queen Pageant rules in order to compete in the State contest. Some require their county contestants to be 4-H members; some do not. 4-H is NOT a requirement at the State level. Please contact your county extension office about entering your county Queen Pageant.
Pageant Judging: Each year, three judges are given the task of selecting the next Indiana State Fair Queen. Each contestant goes through preliminary judging in three categories - Interview, Professional Wear and Formal Wear.
After the preliminary judging at the host hotel, the judges determine the Top Ten Finalists, which are announced at the public pageant on Sunday afternoon, the final day of the Indiana State Fair. During the public contest here at the Fairgrounds, the Top Ten Finalists are then re-judged in Professional Wear and Formal Wear, a category that also includes an on-stage question to answer. (The preliminary Interview scores are kept the same, as there is not time to re-interview the Top Ten Finalists.)
From this second judging, the Indiana State Fair Queen and her Court (the top four Runners-Up) are determined. Miss Congeniality is also announced, as voted by the contestants.
The new Queen will reign for the next twelve months, promoting the Indiana State Fair the following summer throughout the state. For example, on the final day of the 2012 Indiana State Fair, the 2012 Queen crowned Miss Indiana State Fair 2013. That young lady will reign for one year - which includes the summer and State Fair of 2013 - before passing her crown to the 2014 Queen.
