Maria Shrime Gonzalez is standing by her determination to crown Kenzie Petty because the Sole Survivor over her day one ally, Charlie Davis.

“So simply to be clear, 5 of us voted for Kenzie,” Maria, 48, completely informed Us Weekly on Thursday, Might 23, after the season finale of Survivor 46. “I wasn’t the only vote that modified something.”

Maria was considered one of 5 to pick Kenzie, 29, because the winner whereas Charlie, 26, obtained three votes. If Maria had chosen Charlie, who she aligned with on day one, as an alternative of Kenzie, there would have been a tie vote. In the results of a tie, third-place finisher Ben Katzman would have develop into the tiebreaker vote. (In Ben’s interview with Us, he revealed he would have voted for Charlie because the winner if he was within the place to vote.)

All through the season, many followers thought Maria would have been a positive vote for Charlie ultimately because of their tight bond. Nonetheless, she took followers — and Charlie — unexpectedly by moving into the wrong way.

Within the Survivor 46 aftershow, Maria shared that she was satisfied to vote for Kenzie due to her dedication within the ultimate 4 fire-making problem. When chatting with Us on Thursday, Maria shared that Kenzie’s response to Q Burdette’s query about what she would do with the $1 million prize spoke to her.

“As a mom in my life, I’ve given up so lots of my desires. So most of the issues that I wished to do to be a mom, to be utterly unselfish in my life,” Maria defined. “And happening the present, this was the primary time in a very long time that I used to be doing one thing selfishly for me. And when [Kenzie] mentioned that she was going to be egocentric, take this cash, begin her household, I’m like, it spoke to me on such a deeper degree that simply transcended the sport.”

When requested whether or not Charlie may have achieved anything to persuade her to vote his means, Maria stood by her determination to vote for Kenzie.

“This isn’t a narrative about why I didn’t vote for Charlie. This can be a story about why I voted for Kenzie,” she informed Us. “Kenzie simply had that private second for me, that was a painstaking determination. I used to be strolling up these steps to vote saying Charlie, Kenzie every step, Charlie, Kenzie, Charlie, Kenzie. And finally, I selected to go together with my coronary heart on this determination, which was awarding a girl who desires to begin a household the chance to do this.”

Social media has been abuzz about Maria’s determination and the way she seemingly betrayed Charlie. However for Maria, she’s taking the notion of her transfer with a grain of salt.

“Pay attention, me and the block button are, like, greatest pals,” she joked. “By no means in my wildest desires did I feel I might get a lot hate for every thing that I’ve achieved, a lot that has been taken out of context or narratives which have been created about me. It’s arduous to hearken to. It’s arduous to look at. I attempt to ignore as a lot of [it] as I can. I do know who I’m, the individuals who love me and are near me know who I’m. And so the remaining don’t matter. However I’d be mendacity if I didn’t say it’s arduous to learn a few of that stuff.”

Survivor is obtainable to stream on Paramount+.