‘sMothered’ Star Gabriella Vigorito Speaks Out After Pageant Loss: ‘They Did Not Want Me to Win’
Gabriella Vigorito, a cast member on TLC’s sMothered, is speaking out after she failed to place in the top 5 of this year’s Miss Connecticut USA pageant.
“I’m not Miss Connecticut USA. So, what happened?” she said in an April 16 video shared with her more than half a million TikTok followers.
‘sMothered’ cast member claims she had too much ‘status’ to win Miss Connecticut USA
Vigorito didn’t hide her displeasure with the results of the 2024 Miss Connecticut USA pageant, which was held April 13-14 in Windsor, Conn.
“I was very hopeful going into finals,” she said in the three-minute video. “This was my fifth year competing for Miss Connecticut USA. I have put the time in. I’ve been in the top 5 these past two years.”
Nineteen women competed in this year’s pageant, but Vigorito failed to crack the list of finalists.
“I only made top 11,” he said. “Not top 5.”
Vigorito was stunned by the results.
“I was on a reality TV show. I was the face of the show. I went on a national media tour,” she said. “I walked in New York Fashion Week with Miss Universe. And I’m not good enough to make a top 5 at Miss Connecticut USA?”
She suspected her notoriety from sMothered might have hurt her in the contest.
“When you have a certain level of status, I guess they don’t want you to win,” she said. “They did not want me. They did not want me to win. And they did not want to give me more success.”
Virgorito appeared on season 5 of TLC’s reality show about ultra-close mothers and daughters. Her storyline focused on her efforts to follow in her mother’s footsteps as a pageant queen. Catherine Galasso-Vigorito was crowned Miss Connecticut USA in 1988 and went on to compete in the 1988 Miss USA pageant.
Gabriella Vigorito says she didn’t face ‘crazy competition’ in this year’s pageant
As the video continued, Vigorito seemed to disparage other other contestants in the Miss Connecticut USA pageant.
“It’s not like there was crazy competition,” she said. “Connecticut is not a big pageant state.”
She added that the pageant missed out by failing to crown her the winner because she “could have done so much good for this struggling organization.”
Shavana Clarke won this year’s Miss Connecticut USA pageant and will go on to represent the state at Miss USA in August. She is a first-generation Jamaican-American and the first openly lesbian state titleholder in Miss USA history, according to the Miss Connecticut USA website. She earned a BFA in acting from the University of Connecticut and has performed off-Broadway and in regional theater. She’s also an advocate for mental health and has created her own line of crocheted clothing.
This year’s Miss Connecticut USA responds to the drama
Clarke responded to the pageant drama in her own TikTok video.
“I was saddened by the statements in that video, not just for myself but for all the beautiful and incredible women that competed in Miss Connecticut USA this year,” she said.
Clarke added that she “empathized” with Vigorito’s disappointment over losing. She also decried the “bullying” she was seeing on Vigorito’s social media.
“As someone who has experienced the negative effects of bullying, I don’t believe that anyone deserves that kind of hate, especially on social media,” she said.
In the wake of her loss, Vigorito says that after spending years dedicating herself to pageant life, she is moving on.
“I’m choosing to walk away and speak the truth,” she said, adding that she was looking forward to using her platform on social media.
“If they didn’t want me this year, they’re not going to want me next year,” she said. “So we’re done.”
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