Miss New York Kira Kazantsev is this year's Miss America.

This is the third year in a row that the state of New York has won the crown.

Kazantsev sang Pharrell Williams' "Happy" while sitting cross-legged on the stage and , using a red cup as her instrument.

Her platform revolved around fighting against sexual assault in the military. 

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Despite Atlantic City's recent headlines of having casinos closing down one after the other and, people losing jobs left and right, for three hours on Sunday night, the city gets a more favorable reputation as it hosts the 2015 Miss America pageant.

Atlantic City will be presented as a vibrant, upbeat city, featuring its iconic beach, Boardwalk, the Steel Pier, Black Fish Pier and, the Atlantic City Beach Patrol station.

Sam Haskell III, CEO of the Miss America organization, shared, "We hope that our Miss America telecast on Sunday evening on ABC will generate great interest for Atlantic City on a national scale as we showcase their beautiful beaches and Boardwalk."

53 contestants vied for the crown, including representatives from the 50 American states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

When it comes to compelling stories, the contestants had endless tales to tell. 

Miss Wisconsin Raeanna Johnson and her family had to suffer through her brother's suicide. Her brother was addicted to methamphetamine, so the said contestant's platform is how substance abuse affects the family.

On the other hand, Miss Kansas Amanda Sasek also had to endure the loss of her father at the young age of 17 when he decided to kill himself. Her platform is supporting people in their search for strength.

The sister of Miss Delaware Brittany Lewis, meanwhile, was murdered in 2010. Her platform is fighting against domestic violence.

Aside from the dramatic backstories, some highlights of the competition included Miss Rhode Island Ivy DePew collapsing onstage during the first night of the preliminary competition. Also, supermodel Kathy Ireland was dared to burp on command by pageant host Dena Blizzard.

TagsMiss America, Kira Kazantsev