Chelsea Keolani Hardin (born September 5, 1991) is an American model, public speaker, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Hawaii USA 2016. She was the first runner-up to Deshauna Barber of District of Columbia at Miss USA 2016.
Early life
Hardin was born on September 5, 1991, in
Honolulu. She is of
Native Hawaiians,
Chinese people,
Filipinos, Portuguese,
Spaniards,
Dutch people,
Irish people,
English people,
French people, and Scandinavian descent. Her father Kevin Hardin is a Hawaiian Airlines pilot, while her mother Christine Mitchell is a real estate agent.
Hardin attended the ʻIolani School and later California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California.
While a university student, she played
NCAA Division I women's volleyball.
Pageantry
Miss Hawaii USA 2016
Hardin represented
Oahu at Miss Hawaii USA 2016 on November 22, 2015, and was crowned the winner by outgoing titleholder
Emma Wo.
Miss USA 2016
On June 5, 2016, Hardin competed in the Miss USA 2016 pageant in
Las Vegas,
Nevada. She went on to place as the first runner-up to winner
Deshauna Barber of District of Columbia, despite being the favorite to win.
The pageant garnered some controversy due to the question Hardin was asked by the judges during the final question portion of the pageant, which was if she'd vote for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump during the 2016 United States presidential election. The question was criticized by numerous members of the media for being invasive, while the live audience booed after hearing what Hardin had been asked.
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