THE ROAD to the Miss Universe Philippines 2026 crown is getting narrower with the announcement of the Top 31 delegates after the preliminary interview round of the competition.
The announcement was made at the national pageant’s Charity Gala Night held at City of Dreams Manila in Parañaque City on Saturday evening, April 18. Originally, only 30 delegates were supposed to be selected.
The Miss Universe Philippines Organization (MUPH) mounted the event to help raise funds for the three charitable institutions that they are partnering with this year — Hope for Change, Project Pearls, and Miss Possibilities.
All of the 50 delegates still took the stage for the fashion show because, technically, all of the participants are still in contention despite the two rounds of elimination.
The ladies paraded in Filipiniana gowns created by fashion designers Edwin Uy, Chico Estiva, and Miss Universe Philippines Organization officer Albert Andrada.
Advancing to the next round of voting were the following delegates:
* Cebu City, Apriel Smith
* Occidental Mindoro, Neil Silva
* Pampanga, Allyson Hetland
* Iloilo City, Zestah Espinosa
* Rizal (Filipino Society of Southern California) Alicia Buendia
* Sultan Kudarat, Jenrose Javier
* Los Baños, Laguna, Scarlett Anne De Mesa
* Baguio, Roxie Baeyens
* Tarlac, Marian Arellano
* Manila, Justine Felizarta
* Nueva Vizcala (Filipino Society of Washington), Jacqueline Aluning
* Pangasinan, Donna Rein Nuguid
* Cebu Province, Nicole Borromeo
* Negros Occidental, Alexandra Colmenares
* Tandag City, Chrsytel Mae Correos
* Taguig, Ysabella Ysmael
* Cabanatuan City (Filipino Society of Alberta, Canada), Princess Ryla Hernandez
* Mountain Province, Lyneree Montero-Yodong
* San Jose, Negros Oriental (Filipino Socoety of Bellevue, Washington), Jayka Munsayac
* Camiguin, Erica Cadayday
* Samar Island, Catherine Wardle
* Cotabato Province, Clarissa Westram
* Nueva Ecija (Filipino Society of United Kingdom), Michelle Burchelle
* Laguna, Ysabel Prats
* La Union, Bea Millan-Windorski
* Quezon Province, Patricia Ella Evangelista
* Albay, Alexandra Krishna Oriño
* Muntinlupa, Adela-Mae Marshall
* Cavite, Jencel Caña
* Ilocos Norte (Filipino Society of Hawaii), Cherieze Cacayorin
* Tacloban City, Jacqueline Gulrajani
The Top 31 roster was made up of the 15 ladies who topped the “U Vote” online poll on Maya, and the 16 delegates who received the highest scores from the selection committee.
The first round of voting for the preliminary evening gown competition saw all the 50 delegates, but only the Top 40 (20 voting leaders and 20 highest scorers) moved on to the second round of voting.
The Top 31 delegates will now move on to the third round of public voting for the preliminary swimsuit competition. Only the 10 online voting leaders will be announced at the end of the voting period on April 25, and will be proclaimed as semifinalists.
The semifinal roster will increase on the day of the final competition on May 2, at the coronation show that will take place at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Joining the 10 voting leaders in the semifinals will be the 10 delegates with the highest scores from the selection committee, five brand award recipients, and five wildcard picks. (Armin P. Adina ©Philippine Daily Inquirer)
