Miss Winona makes history as the first Native American to win Miss Minnesota

The 2022 Miss Minnesota pageant was held last Friday in Eden Prairie. The winner and crowned the 86th Miss Minnesota is 24-year old, Rachel Evangelisto, who was also Miss Winona this past year.

Rachel participated in the pageant with twenty other women. According to her bio, in 2019, she graduated from the University of Minnesota, Morris, with a degree in Political Science and an emphasis on Law. She has been accepted to Mitchell Hamline Law School where she hopes to obtain a Juris Doctorate in Tribal Law.

Currently, Rachel works as an Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Guardian ad Litem for the ICWA Division of Minnesota. She is also an enrolled member of the Húŋkpapȟa Standing Rock Sioux tribe.

Evangelisto will represent all of Minnesota at the next Miss America pageant which is exciting!