A girl wishing to compete in the pageant starts at either the local level, if a regional contest is held in her state, or goes directly to the pageant's headquarters in Caracas. Regional contests generally select three to six candidates (except for the massive Miss Centroccidental pageant, which covers six to seven midwestern states) who will likely represent the state or one nearby: i.e. a candidate who is a finalist for Miss Carabobo will usually expect to represent Carabobo or a neighboring state such as Yaracuy in the final pageant.