8 Rules You Didn’t Know Mrs. American Contestants Have to Follow (Exclusive)

The Mrs. America Pageant is currently underway and there are a few notable rules contestants must follow during the competition.

After Heidi Stephens was officially crowned the new Mrs. American 2024 on Aug. 27, taking over the title from Hannah Neeleman, the competition continues with the Mrs. America pageant on Aug. 28. 

The Mrs. America Pageant, which includes Mrs. America, Mrs. American and Miss for America Strong Pageant divisions, was first established in 1938 and aims to “feature the most accomplished married and single women of America,” according to the official website.

Every year, 51 delegates from across the country are selected to compete for the coveted title and the winners of Mrs. America and Mrs. American will eventually go on to compete for the Mrs. World title. 

The 2021 Miss for America Strong winner and current judge Kayelin Tiggs spoke exclusively with PEOPLE about the rules for the pageant, noting that it’s important for contestants to “have a cause” that they are passionate about.

“I think a woman who is passionate about what she does and can talk about it are the ones who will be able to connect with the judges,” she continues. “So a woman who’s been able to say, ‘Here’s what I do, here’s why I do it, here’s how I’m making the impact. And here’s how the title will amplify that impact,’ I think are the ones who are able to really do well.” 

Since winning her title in 2021, Tiggs has been working on House Bill 30 in Ohio, which “would require every single correctional facility, jails, prisons, workhouses, to provide menstrual hygiene products to incarcerated women for free” and allow them “one shower a day” during their cycle, Tiggs tells PEOPLE. 

“My background is in behavioral neuroscience and I worked for the Air Force base,” she explains. “At the time, I had been working for the Naval Medical Research Unit doing research for about four and a half years so I took that research background and I started talking with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections, our local jails, just trying to do research on this.” 

“And that’s how I discovered that there was no legislation and that this was the gap,” she said noting how she talked with various incarcerated women about their experiences. “I wanted to create consistency across Ohio because a woman could travel from one facility to another,” she continues. “It’s rare that a woman will stay in just one facility for the entirety of her sentence so I wanted to make sure that no matter where a woman was, whether she was in a small jail in a rural area or she was in a bigger city, there would be products that would be available to her at basic levels of access.”

Ahead of the rest of the competition, Tiggs shared some additional insights with PEOPLE about the rules each contestant must follow to compete for one of the coveted titles. Read ahead for the biggest rules for the pageant.

Contestants must be married to qualify for the Mrs. division, but divorced women can still compete in the Miss division 

Contestants who are eyeing the Mrs. America or Mrs. American titles must be legally married in order to compete. Tiggs explains that if you are separated from your partner but still legally married, then you are still allowed to compete in those competitions. 

“We do have women who are divorced,” she says. “We’ve had women who competed in the Mrs division and have gotten divorced and now are competing in the Miss division.” 

“We all get it,” she says of divorced contestants. “We all understand that as women, things happen that are out of our control.”

Tiggs adds that a contestant doesn’t have to be escorted by their husbands in the pageant and it’s not something they will be docked points for. Mrs. American 2024 Heidi Stephens told PEOPLE that just hours before her Mrs. American interview, she wasn’t sure if her husband would be able to attend the pageant due to work, though he was able to attend last minute.

“We as judges give a hundred percent of our time to each woman who’s sitting in front of us because that’s what each person deserves.” Tiggs continues. “And as someone who’s competed, and competed a lot, you want a judge that cares about you, that wants to listen to you.”

You have to resign as Mrs. America if you get a divorce within the year you won the crown

If the winner of Mrs. America or Mrs. American gets a divorce during her reign, she would have to resign and the runner-up would take the title instead. 

“If for some reason during your reign, you get a divorce, you’re no longer married, that means you’re no longer eligible,” Tiggs notes.

Attendance to rehearsals and other activities is mandatory 

Tiggs explains that contestants must arrive for the competition “a week before” and it typically lasts about 10 days. Over that time, the contestants are “going out on excursions, they’re having rehearsals, they’re having different dinners” every night, Tiggs notes.

Rehearsals are mandatory for contestants and attendance is taken beforehand “because everyone has a certain position on stage” and “they’re being accounted for in the dance,” Tiggs says.  

“If there’s a state that’s missing, it’s either because she’s not here or something happened to her, Tiggs says. “So, we want to make sure that she’s there and she’s okay.” 

The competition interviews are ’round-robin’ style 

Tiggs confirms that contestants must participate in a “round-robin” style interview with a panel of five judges. She reveals that “interviews are four minutes long” and that each contestant has to sit one-on-one with each judge and answer their questions.

While there are no specific rules for the interview, contestants must submit a bio beforehand, which includes basic information about themselves, their family, their job, and what interests them. 

Tiggs says that the women competing are typically “not amateurs” to these types of competitions and have “all won state titles” to qualify for these pageants. “They’re preparing for a year, sometimes years for this,” she says. 

There are no ‘formal rules’ around a contestant’s appearance

Tiggs explains that while there are “no formal rules” around what a contestant wears during the pageant, “they want to look appropriate for [their] division.”

So for a single woman competing in the Miss competition, “they’re allowed to be a little bit more free” with their appearance and attire, Tiggs says.

“The Mrs contestant is a little bit more poised and more mature,” she continues. “They’re walking on stage with their husbands and representing their families. So I think it’s just a maturity difference and a difference in the overall presentation.” 

Judges don’t pick the winning costumes

For the costume portion, Tiggs says there are also no specific rules or regulations that contestants must adhere to, aside from not wearing “things that could burn the theater down.” 

She adds that there is an award for costumes, but they are not picked by the judges. “Pageant staff and directors will pick the best costumes,” she notes.

Contestants can compete while pregnant 

Expecting moms are allowed to compete in the pageant. Tiggs says “there’s been Miss [contestants] that have competed while pregnant” and even competed while they’re “not married, but still having a baby.” 

Contestants have to be over 18 years old to compete, but there’s no age cap

While contestants must be at least 18 years old to compete, there is no age limit beyond that. In fact, one of the contestants who made it into the top 15 was 60 years old before Heidi Stephens was crowned the winner. 

Tiggs emphasizes that “age doesn’t matter; if she’s good, she’s good.”