Martinique, Corsica, Limousin… Why do certain regions never (or almost never) win at Miss France?

“Nord-Pas-de-Calais is a real training center for Miss France ». A few days after his victory at the Zénith de Dijon, Eve Gilles spoke to “Buzz TV” and talked about what contributed to his success. “We have preparation that teaches us and explains everything that will happen to us: hairstyle, makeup, outfit, speaking… The committee manages to unite the entire region behind it and create a real family Misses. »

And the statistics prove him right. Over the past eight years, the Nord-Pas-de-Calais won four victories with the coronation of Camille Cerf in 2015, Iris Mittenaere the following year, Maëva Coucke in 2018 and finally that of Ève Gilles on December 16. A box full of questions when we know that, moreover, other regions have never won the famous title like theAuvergne and the Martinique or that some have been waiting for decades to achieve victory again like the Provence which has only one winner with Sylvie Parera, Miss France 1979, elected under the title of Miss Marseille.

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Tradition and chauvinism

The fault first lies in a tradition. Unlike other regions, such as Île-de-France, for example, Nord-Pas-de-Calais is a land of Miss. Beauty queen elections represent institutions acclaimed by residents. Moreover, the committee receives nearly 1000 applications and has 16 departmental elections, compared to six for Provence. Faced with such a number of competitors, he benefits from a wide choice increasing the probability of having a potential winner. As Enrico Macias sang: “The people of the North have the sun in their hearts that they do not have outside” but they are also chauvinistic.

Bruno Gilles, the father of Ève Gilles, Miss France 2024, indicated this to the Voice of the North : “I was confident because we are in a region that votes en masse. On social networks, many are complaining about it, but we are not going to blame Nord-Pas-de-Calais for being chauvinistic”he said. Traditionally, Guadeloupe, Tahiti or Alsace also represent regions which vote a lot while, conversely, Limousin, Auvergne or Île-de-France invest less on election night.

Important preparation

Some committees are more involved than others in preparing their candidates, because of their resources or the enthusiasm in their region. The one in Nord-Pas-de-Calais has been organizing a preparation trip for several years, similar to that experienced by Miss France candidates. The young women do not return home for a month, take classes in general knowledge, fashion shows, makeup and rehearse arduously for the big show of the regional election which prides itself on being a mini Miss France and has this year welcomed 5,200 spectators.

A preparation that generally hits the mark during the month of preparation for the national election. But sometimes that's not enough. In December 2016, 2018 and 2019, the representatives of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Laurine Maricau, Florentine Somers and Laura Cornillot, were not selected among the fifteen finalists. The second was notably excluded from the selection because of her behavior. During her election, Ève Gilles, for her part, did not obtain the majority of votes from the public (she placed third) but was, on the other hand, at the head of those of the jury.

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Fragmented votes among the misses from the south

Another possible explanation: the fragmentation of regions. The south of France has always been represented by various competitors. The promotion of Miss France 1979 thus included candidates from the Côte d'Azur, Grande Motte, Languedoc and Marseille. If the number of regions participating in the competition was drastically reduced at the dawn of the 2010s, the south of France still remains fragmented with, this year, candidates from the Côte d'Azur, Provence, Roussillon and Languedoc.

A map that inevitably divides votes and reduces the impact of the region. In December 2020, the young women wearing the scarf from the Côte d'Azur and Provence, respectively Lara Gautier and April Benayoum, were both among the five finalists forcing southerners to make a choice and mathematically reduce the votes .

Nord-Pas-de-Calais, on the other hand, benefits from a united land. At the end of the 1970s, this part of France had no less than five different representatives in the national election: Côte d'Opale, Flanders, Lille, Littoral Nord and Métropole Nord. Since 2010, all have been grouped into a single region allowing a larger flow of votes. Especially since Nord-Pas-de-Calais has four million inhabitants…

However, these considerations of chauvinism, preparation, votes and fragmented regions do not explain everything, fortunately indeed! The aura of the Miss France competition lies precisely in the element of mystery which surrounds the choice of viewers and the jury as to the winner of the competition. An essential magic to continue making people dream.

The winners of the Miss France competition

Since the creation of the competition in 1920 by Maurice de Waleffe who elected “The most beautiful woman in France”, Île-de-France is the region which has won the title of Miss France the most times with 16 victories including that of Diane Leyre in 2022. Since 2010 and the regrouping of the regions, Nord-Pas-de-Calais logically comes first with four victories (2015, 2016, 2018 and 2024). Normandy (2010 and 2021) comes in second position tied with Guadeloupe (2020 and 2023). Brittany (2011), Alsace (2012), Burgundy (2013), Orléanais (2014), Guyana (2017) and Tahiti (2019) all have a title.