The Miss Alabama competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

 in the Miss America

Miss America

The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...

 pageant.

Miss Alabamas have performed strongly at the Miss America pageant, particularly in the early 21st century, when the state produced their third Miss America

Miss America

The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...

, a first runner-up, a second runner-up, a fourth runner-up, two semi-finalists, and one quarter-finalist.

They did very well in the '80s, as well, placing 1st runner up to Miss America 1981, 3rd runner-up 1983, 2nd runner-up 1984, 4th runner-up 1986, top 10 1987, and 4th runner-up 1989.