On Friday, Feb. 7 at 10 p.m., the Student Government Association Elections Council announced Riley Parman as the next Miss Auburn on the Cater Hall steps.
Cheered on by ecstatic supporters, Parman greeted the 2024 Miss Auburn Grace Crim. Crim escorted Parman up the stairs, passing off a flower bouquet and the baton of Miss Auburn.
“This is probably the greatest honor in my life and also the greatest shock of my life,” Parman said. “Yeah, I never really thought I would be here, so it’s such an honor and privilege, and I’m really excited to serve our school in this capacity.”
As Crim passes on the position to Parman, she described her last moments as Miss Auburn as the fastest.
“I’m handing it off to the best, like I mean, the best person to do the job right now,” said Crim. “Those candidates are so equipped, and they all would be the best person to do the job. [Parman’s] people, like, believed in her, and I’m so excited to see what she does.”
Riley Parmen poses with former Miss Auburn Grace Crim for photos while celebrating being declared the new Miss Auburn on Feb. 7, 2025.
Parman’s platform centers around helping students find their unique passion to serve the university and community, unifying the student body behind her and her campaign.
“I’ve never felt more loved in my life,” Parman said. “I feel like every part of campus that I’ve ever touched is rallied around me to the best of their ability, so it feels wonderful, and I can’t wait to serve those students in the same way that they’ve served me this week."
As Miss Auburn, Parman will be the official hostess of Auburn University, representing the university internally to students and externally to the community while embodying the Spirit of Auburn University. She will also serve as an honorary member of the War Eagle Girls and Plainsmen.
Miss Auburn 2025 Riley Parman poses with the Ware Eagle Girls and Plainsmen on Feb. 7, 2025.
For her official start as Miss Auburn, Parman will focus on using her “very unique opportunity” to speak with incoming freshmen, be present at all Camp War Eagle rallies and help them find their passions while meeting with administrators and faculty to facilitate more accessible university resources.
The 2025 Miss Auburn winner is the first Miss Auburn to be elected through rank-choice voting, which SGA voted to pass on Oct. 14, 2024. With the new voting system, a candidate will win if they have 50% of the first-choice votes. If no candidate has more than 50%, the candidate with the fewest first-choice votes is eliminated. Voters who picked that candidate as their first choice will have their votes reallocated to their second-choice candidate. This process repeats until one candidate has the majority, which is more than 50% of the vote.
In this election, no candidate won a majority of first-choice votes, so runoffs began.
Parman won 3,499 votes at 50.57% after three runoff rounds. In the first runoff, Sophie Marino was eliminated with 1,134 votes at 12.44%. Vera Smith T was eliminated in the second runoff with 1,541 votes at 18%. The final runoff eliminated Kendall Anderson with 1,784 votes at 22.85%. These reallocated votes went to Ellen Connell with 3,420 votes at 49.43%, falling short of Parman by 79 votes or 1.14%.
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