pageant
Miss Universe candidates pose for a picture during a red carpet inside a SMX convention in metro Manila, Philippines Jan. 29, 2017. From left: Miss Israel Yam Kaspers Anshel, Miss Namibia Lizelle Esterhuizen, Miss Haiti Raquel Pelissier, Miss Germany Johanna Acs, Miss Kenya Mary Esther Were, Miss Jamaica Isabel Dalley and Miss Mauritius Kushboo Ramnawaj. REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco

One of the five Miss Universe 2017 finalists chided President Donald Trump's election during the international beauty pageant in the Philippines Sunday night. Mary Esther Were, who was competing as Miss Kenya, noted the popular vote discrepancy in the U.S. election when answering a question for what she thought about Trump's presidency.

Pageant host Steve Harvey asked Were if she was "excited" or had any "concerns" about Trump becoming the commander in chief, a question that appeared to at first catch her off guard. She then confidently answered with a response that Trump, who has claimed without evidence that as many as 5 million people voted illegally in the November election, would likely have rebuked.

"Politics ... ahh OK let me just start again," Were said after briefly stammering at the pageant held in Manila. "Donald Trump, having been elected as the President of the United States, may not have been the choice of many people living in the United States because of the divided support system for the outgoing President Barack Obama, who has supporting an upcoming woman President ... who was supposed to be a woman President Hillary Clinton."

But Were wasn't done. Without specifically mentioning Trump's executive immigration order temporarily banning travel to the U.S. from seven predominately Muslim countries — an executive order that took effect Friday afternoon — Were seemed to make reference to the new president's series of controversial policy proposals along the campaign trail.

"So, so many people oppose his position," Were added. "But I feel that once [Trump] took up his position, he was able to unify the entire nation."

Clinton won the popular vote by nearly 3 million votes, but Trump won the Electoral College, which sealed his presidential victory.

Were's answer seemingly divided social media users, who both supported and condemned her response as she became a trending topic Monday morning.

While Kenya was not on the list of countries where immigration to the U.S. was banned, two othr African countries -- Sudan and Somalia -- were included.