For the first time in the history of the contest, a woman born outside Italy has been crowned “Miss Italia 1996”. Denny Mendez, born in Santo Domingo, but who became a naturalized Italian citizen four years ago, won the contest despite strong objections by some judges who maintained that the selection of a woman with dark skin did not represent the “classic Italian beauty”.
One member of the jury resigned after objecting to the presence of Miss Mendez in the ranks of the finalists, and the 1995 Miss Italia also objected to Miss Mendez’s victory. Miss Mendez will remain, however, Miss Italia for one year, as her election cannot be reversed.
She won the most votes in a television viewers’ poll and the majority of those in a jury of 30.