Spoiler warning: This article contains details from episode five of Dancing With the Stars season 35.
Mariah Carey Night brought a new leader to the Dancing With the Stars ballroom, with Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas earning 25 out of 30 during the fourth week of competition.
The score moved Higgins and Ballas ahead of a three-couple tie that had dominated the early part of the episode. Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach, Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson, and Jenna Dewan and Val Chmerkovskiy each received 24 out of 30.
Carey’s music supplied the full soundtrack for the themed night, with the remaining season 35 celebrities performing songs from the Grammy winner’s catalog. The featured hits included “Emotions,” “Fantasy,” “Obsessed” and “Touch My Body.”
The Mariah Carey Night scoreboard
Frech, Shum and Dewan landed their matching totals consecutively, with each couple receiving three 8 paddles from the judges. The 24 marked the highest score of the season so far for both Frech and Dewan.
Higgins and Ballas then topped that early benchmark with their 25. Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong opened the recorded results with 21 out of 30, while Tyler Cameron and Sharna Burgess also finished with 21.
The scores listed during the live episode were:
Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas: 25/30
Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach: 24/30
Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson: 24/30
Jenna Dewan and Val Chmerkovskiy: 24/30
Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong: 21/30
Tyler Cameron and Sharna Burgess: 21/30
No totals were yet listed for Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov, Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa, Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson, Tatyana Ali and Jan Ravnik, Jackson Olson and Emma Slater, or Connor Wood and Rylee Arnold.
Those 12 celebrities entered Mariah Carey Night after the previous Tuesday’s Yacht Rock Night ended with the elimination of Taylor Hanson and Britt Stewart.
How the elimination is decided
The competition’s weekly outcome is determined by combining the judges’ scores with viewer votes. The couple with the lowest combined total is eliminated at the end of the episode.
Viewers can cast as many as 10 votes per couple through each voting method. Voting is available through ABC’s website and by text, meaning a viewer can use both methods for the same couple.
Live voting takes place during the East Coast airing and closes shortly after the night’s final performance. West Coast viewers who want their votes counted must participate between 5 p.m. PT and approximately 6:45 p.m. PT rather than waiting for the later broadcast.
What Happens Next?
The live results provided so far do not establish which couple was eliminated on Mariah Carey Night. Scores were still outstanding for half of the remaining field, leaving the final standings and combined voting outcome unresolved at that stage of the episode.
Season 35 of Dancing With the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m., with episodes simulcast on ABC and Disney+. Each episode is also available to stream the following day on Hulu.