{"id":8685,"date":"2025-11-18T18:09:27","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T02:09:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/?p=8685"},"modified":"2025-11-18T18:09:27","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T02:09:27","slug":"miss-universe-judge-resigns-three-days-before-competition-after-claiming-secret-committee-pre-picked-finalists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/?p=8685","title":{"rendered":"Miss Universe judge resigns three days before competition after claiming \u2018secret committee\u2019 pre-picked finalists"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"main\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"hydrate-root sc-10wlkbs-0\" data-component=\"SupportNSCNative\" data-loading=\"lazy\" data-theme-name=\"base\">\n<aside class=\"sc-hez36s-0 dFpFuY\">\n<div class=\"sc-hez36s-1 iBibVd\">\n<h3 data-testid=\"support-nsc-title\" class=\"sc-hez36s-2 jVZWGn\">Your support helps us to tell the story<\/h3>\n<div class=\"sc-hez36s-8 juUDRT\">\n<div class=\"sc-hez36s-13 cqPbFA\">\n<div class=\"sc-aja53j-0 rAFIl sc-hez36s-16 jZSKtc\">\n<div class=\"sc-aja53j-6 PdmgT\">\n<div data-testid=\"dropdown-with-gradient-collapsed-content-container\" class=\"sc-aja53j-5 eZqxmv\">\n<div>\n<div data-testid=\"dropdown-with-gradient-collapsed-content\" class=\"sc-aja53j-4 tawua\">\n<div>\n<div data-testid=\"support-nsc-collapsed-content-tablet\" class=\"sc-hez36s-7 gZmYS\">\n<p class=\"sc-1uza6dc-0 iCTyfe\">From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it&#8217;s investigating the financials of Elon Musk&#8217;s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, &#8216;The A Word&#8217;, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-1uza6dc-0 iCTyfe\">At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-1uza6dc-0 iCTyfe\">The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n<p><strong class=\"sc-1uza6dc-1 cglitp\">Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><button class=\"sc-aja53j-1 keLMOw sc-aja53j-7 eMEmGu\"><span data-testid=\"dropdown-with-gradient-dropdown-tablet\" class=\"sc-aja53j-3 dHXFkr\"><span data-action-type=\"Read more\" class=\"sc-aja53j-2 gyGWOu\">Read more<\/span><svg class=\"sc-eaj12q-0 hUgQwJ sc-culv3z-0 eifaJK sc-a5wy94-0 hyKPon\"><use href=\"#ee6613da15642019\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>One of the judges for the upcoming Miss Universe pageant has announced that he will be withdrawing from the event. <\/p>\n<p>Composer Omar Harfouch shared a series of posts Tuesday on his Instagram Stories explaining that he was confused and concerned regarding his fellow judges for the event scheduled for Friday in Bangkok, Thailand.<\/p>\n<p>He claimed that he learned through social media that there was an \u201cimpromptu jury\u201d that was asked to pick 30 finalists in advance out of the 136 countries that are supposed to participate. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe results of this selection are currently being kept secret,\u201d one of his posts read, adding that none of the \u201creal\u201d eight judges were part of this jury, which he claimed was \u201ccomposed of individuals with a significant potential conflict of interest due to some [personal] relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants, including the person responsible for counting the votes and managing the results, which constitutes a further conflict of interest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Harfouch then said he spoke to the Miss Universe officials regarding the lack of transparency, which led to them posting \u201ca list of names associated with the selection on their Instagram page\u201d without naming exactly what role each person played. <\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-awdjp1-2 cbpRGD sc-awdjp1-3 image align-center\">\n<figure class=\"sc-1cbdeug-0 cXcwgU\">\n<div class=\"sc-awdjp1-0 gTINUB\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.the-independent.com\/2025\/11\/18\/19\/03\/GettyImages-2184639149.jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.the-independent.com\/2025\/11\/18\/19\/03\/GettyImages-2184639149.jpeg?quality=75&amp;width=320&amp;auto=webp 320w, https:\/\/static.the-independent.com\/2025\/11\/18\/19\/03\/GettyImages-2184639149.jpeg?quality=75&amp;width=640&amp;auto=webp 640w\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"One of the competition\u2019s former judges claimed 30 finalists were picked in advance without any of the judges being involved\" class=\"sc-1mc30lb-0 ggpMaE\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"sc-1cbdeug-1 sc-1cbdeug-3 gtVitN hgzWpY\">One of the competition\u2019s former judges claimed 30 finalists were picked in advance without any of the judges being involved<span class=\"sc-1cbdeug-7 exGSyR\"> <!-- -->(<!-- -->AFP via Getty Images<!-- -->)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DRNDIUxk6yQ\/embed\/captioned\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"sc-wn0aau-1 dZPXBi\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>His posts concluded by writing that he would no longer be a judge for the competition. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter having a disrespectful conversation with [Miss Universe CEO] Raul Rocha about the lack of transparency in the Miss Universe voting process, l decided to resign from the jury and refuse to be part of this charade,\u201d Harfouch wrote. \u201cI will also not be playing the music composed for the event.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Shortly after, Miss Universe officials posted a statement on its Instagram account, addressing Harfouch\u2019s comments and how the judging process works. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Miss Universe Organization firmly clarifies that no impromptu jury has been created, that no external group has been authorized to evaluate delegates or select finalists, and that all competition evaluations continue to follow the established, transparent, and supervised MUO protocols,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGiven [Mr. Harfouch&#8217;s] expressed confusion, his public mischaracterization of the program, and his stated desire not to participate, the Miss Universe Organization respectfully acknowledges his withdrawal from the official judging panel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The competition explained that the musician was no longer allowed to \u201cdisplay, reference, or associate himself with any Miss Universe trademarks, service marks, logos, titles, or registered properties, in any format, medium, or communication, whether digital, written, or verbal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Miss Universe Organization encourages the public, media outlets, and fans worldwide to rely solely on verified MUO communications and to continue supporting the delegates whose leadership, service, and dedication reflect the true values of Miss Universe,\u201d the statement concluded.<\/p>\n<p><em>The Independent<\/em> has reached out to the Miss Universe officials for further comment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it&#8217;s investigating the financials of Elon Musk&#8217;s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, &#8216;The A Word&#8217;, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more One of the judges for the upcoming Miss Universe pageant has announced that he will be withdrawing from the event. Composer Omar Harfouch shared a series of posts Tuesday on his Instagram Stories explaining that he was confused and concerned regarding his fellow judges for the event scheduled for Friday in Bangkok, Thailand. He claimed that he learned through social media that there was an \u201cimpromptu jury\u201d that was asked to pick 30 finalists in advance out of the 136 countries that are supposed to participate. \u201cThe results of this selection are currently being kept secret,\u201d one of his posts read, adding that none of the \u201creal\u201d eight judges were part of this jury, which he claimed was \u201ccomposed of individuals with a significant potential conflict of interest due to some [personal] relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants, including the person responsible for counting the votes and managing the results, which constitutes a further conflict of interest.\u201d Harfouch then said he spoke to the Miss Universe o&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8686,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8685"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8685"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8685\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}