ABC shocked millions of viewers on Monday when the new Bachelorette was revealed. While the new lead is usually chosen from the season currently airing, Peter’s season was almost too much of a disaster to follow in this tradition. Instead, producers decided to reach way way back into the Bachelor archives and cast a contestant from 2014. When Clare Crawley was announced, the runner up on Juan Pablo’s season of the Bachelor, everyone asked a similar question: Who’s that? However, having seen Clare on TV before her upcoming season, I can tell you that she is a fantastic choice for the new Bachelorette. Here are some reasons why.

 

 

• She can stand up for herself. Clare doesn’t take any crap. When she was eliminated on Juan Pablo’s season, she famously walked away from him, telling him she wouldn’t want her kids to have a father like him. Similarly, on her stunt on the spin-off show Bachelor Winter Games, when faced with a man named Christian who became upset when she didn’t show up for a jacuzzi date, Clare held her ground. She explained her feelings to him and when he began making comments like “I don’t go in living room for woman” and “Who’s Clare,” she cut off the conversation and knew when to walk away. These past conversations display that in her season Clare will be able to stand up for what she wants in a house full of guys who aren’t always ready for the committment that she is seeking.

• She’s funny. Clare was famous for having a conversation with a raccoon on Bachelor in Paradise, and I’m personally looking forward to many more moments like this when she has her own season. 

• She’s old enough to know what she wants. The past few seasons of the Bachelor have been characterized by people in their early 20’s making really bad decisions and failing to find the love that they set out for. No more. Clare is 38 and will be turning 39 on set. Not to say that age affects whether or not a person can fall in love, but age definitely plays a role in decision-making. Clare knows what she wants, is determined to get it, and has the experience necessary to keep level-headed through this crazy process.

• She’s not in it for the fame. Clare has said that at the end of the day, all she wants is somebody to come home to. In a Bachelor age dominated by Instagram models and “influencers”, this is a refreshing take. Clare doesn’t want somebody who came on the show for fame- she genuinely wants love.

• She falls hard. The show isn’t interesting unless the lead is actually in love, and Clare will be. I mean, she fell for Juan Pablo, who is well known as one of Bachelor Nation’s biggest jerks. If she can fall for him, she’ll definitely fall for at least one of the men on her season. 

 

 

All in all, I’m really pumped for the next season of the Bachelorette. After the epic failure that was Peter’s season, I think that Clare will be a new, refreshing start for the show. I definitely recommend tuning in when her season airs!