Overview
- Juror Omar Harfouch announced his resignation, alleging an improvised panel preselected 30 finalists and citing possible conflicts of interest.
- The Miss Universe Organization rejected his account, affirmed established protocols, accepted his departure, and named Filipino singer Louie Heredia as his replacement.
- Days earlier, Harfouch helped broker a meeting in Bangkok where co-organizers Raúl Rocha and Nawat Itsaragrisil publicly reconciled following Nawat’s widely criticized insult of Miss Mexico Fátima Bosch.
- Public voting remains active in the official app with free ad-supported votes or paid packages from US$0.99 for 3 votes up to US$199.99 for 1,000, with voting windows closing on November 19.
- Multiple contestants have withdrawn or been replaced—including Persia’s Sahar Biniaz, Germany’s Diana Fast, China’s Xuhe Hou, Niger’s Zoulahatou Amadou, and Congo’s Déborah Djema—as the November 21 final approaches at Impact Challenger Hall near Bangkok.