Screengrab from the Miss Universe website.

MANILA, Philippines - Heads up Miss Universe fans! The competition has officially begun. Online voting for your favorite contestant begins today, November 16, 2012 and ends on December 19, 2012. For the second year in a row, the winner of the online voting automatically lands a spot in the semifinals.

In order to vote, log on to the Miss Universe website and follow the instructions provided. In order to qualify, you need to have a valid email address and be at least 16 years old. You will be prompted to rank the contestants on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being the lowest. Voters can vote up to 10 times a day with one e-mail address.

The results will be aired after the live telecast of the competition on December 20,2012. The winner of last year's online vote was Miss Portugal.

MISS PHILIPPINES

MISS PHILIPPINES. Will take home this year's crown? Photo from the Miss Universe website.

Janine Tugonon is the Philippines' bet for this year's Miss Universe after winning the Binibining Pilipinas 2012 crown. She lost the year before to Shamcey Supsup who landed the third runner-up spot in that year's Miss Universe. Tugonon graduated cum laude with a degree in Pharmacy from the University of Santo Tomas.

Will you be casting your votes for her? Let us know in the comments section below or on Twitter using the hashtag #Rappler.