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Bennatt, I learned, was Texas-born and -raised, a ubiquitous presence for years on that state’s pageant circuit. In 2011, she made it as far as fourth runner-up in the Miss Texas competition, so she hit the road and hit the pageant jackpot in New Mexico – first winning the title of Miss Ruidoso in 2012 and then Miss New Mexico about three months later – thus becoming eligible to compete for the Miss America crown in 2013, her ultimate goal.

All of which is perfectly legal under Miss America rules. But it left me feeling uneasy about such blithe acceptance of carpetbagger queens in a competition that purports to present the best and most beautiful representative from each state.

Still, this was Miss America, not a presidential election, and the column, for the most part, was one of my frothier efforts.

But you couldn’t tell that from the overwhelming response it received. The column also was picked up by numerous pageant websites (who knew they existed?), where discussion was heated, fairly catty and evenly divided.

It got ugly.

I thought about that in light of the recent ugliness surrounding the Miss USA pageant, which has been overshadowed and nearly scuttled not by a controversial contestant but by Donald Trump, co-owner of the Miss USA-Miss Universe organizations and one of the many Republican presidential candidates, who made disparaging (and mostly inaccurate) comments about Mexican immigrants.

(And here we should mention that Miss America is not the same as Trump’s glitzier Miss USA, though both feature women parading around in swimsuits.)

It made me curious as to what had become of our Candice Bennatt. Her trip to the big Miss America pageant by way of New Mexico in January 2013 had been her last chance to win. By the time the next Miss America pageant rolled around in 2014, she was the ripe old age of 25, too old to compete under Miss America rules.

But she was not too old to vie for the Miss USA crown. Bennatt, as it turns out, is still in the game. Miss Almost Texas-turned-Miss New Mexico is now Miss Louisiana USA, and she will be among the contestants competing for better or worse in Trump’s Miss USA pageant Sunday in Baton Rouge, La.

Girl gets around.

According to Miss USA rules, you need only be single and childless, at least 18 and under 27 by year’s end and a resident or full-time college student in the state in which you wish to compete.

Bennatt fits the criteria. She’s now 26, calls New Orleans her hometown and recently completed her first year of law school at Loyola University New Orleans, according to her Miss USA website.

Her page makes no mention of New Mexico.

Not surprisingly, Bennatt’s state hopping is of little concern to pageant officials.

“I don’t see why there should be any controversy,” said Ryan Miles, associate director of RPM Productions, the Aiken, S.C.-based organizers of the Miss South Carolina USA, Miss North Carolina USA and Miss Louisiana USA pageants. “She’s a student at Loyola and nearing two years in Louisiana.”

Miles also pointed out that Bennatt is dating Jack Walker, the vice president of Slap Ya Mama, a Cajun food company based in Ville Platte, La., which apparently gives her some weird local clout.

New Orleans Times-Picayune entertainment reporter Chelsea Brasted, who is covering the Miss USA pageant, said she is aware of the flap over Bennatt in New Mexico but has heard of no similar fuss in Louisiana.

“She’s been pretty upfront about how she’s not from Louisiana, but she also is a Loyola law student and the school’s reputation likely bears some weight,” Brasted said. “That said, Louisiana doesn’t pay much attention to pageant queens until they’re on a national stage, so if she wins, it might come up.”

That may be the better way to look at this – which is to say don’t look until it matters, if it ever does.

Then again, why look at all? I won’t be watching Sunday. For me, the best and most beautiful were crowned last Sunday – and those women were wearing soccer cleats.

UpFront is a daily front-page news and opinion column. Comment directly to Joline at 823-3603, jkrueger@abqjournal.com or follow her on Twitter @jolinegkg. Go to ABQjournal.com/letters/new to submit a letter to the editor.