Alicia Machado, Former Miss Universe Body-Shamed By Donald Trump, Becomes US Citizen To Vote Against Him

Alicia Machado, a former Miss Universe, has become a U.S. citizen so that she can vote for Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump — who had body-shamed her during her pageant days — for president.

Alicia Machado To Vote Against Trump

Machado has been expressing her unwavering support for Clinton for months, and urging those able to vote to cast their ballots for the former Secretary of State come November. However, Machado herself, who is originally from Venezuela, was unable to cast her own vote in the 2016 election until recently.

“My god I’m so exited !!!!!!!! Thank you ! God Bless America! USA naturalization moment!” Machado captioned a picture of herself. “This my really proud day and my totally compromise ! My happy moment totally !! ????????????????”

She later posted another picture of herself waving an American flag. In the caption, Machado stated that she would be voting for Clinton, and made reference to some of the offensive names that Trump had referred to her as when he was the co-owner of the Miss Universe Organization.

“I so proud and inspiration to be a U.S. Citizen! I’ll be Voting! All my power and my support become with my next President @hillaryclinton,” Machado wrote, adding, “Miss Housekeeping and miss Piggy Can Vote @realdonaldtrump.”

Back in 1996, Machado, then just 19, was crowned Miss Universe. Months after winning the title, Machado’s weight gain became a major subject of interest. Pageant officials even reportedly threatened to take away her crown if she didn’t get back down to her pageant weight. Trump, who had called Machado an “eating machine,” did not hide his disdain for her fuller figure.

“We want her to stay as Miss Universe and she is working on her problem,” Trump told People magazine in February 1997. “When you win a beauty pageant people don’t think you’re going to go from 118 to 160 in less than a year, and you really have an obligation to stay in perfect physical shape.”

Machado is currently campaigning for Clinton in the battleground state of Florida.