LOS ANGELES – In the end, after all 100 million votes were counted, Arkansas’ dark horse triumphed over San Diego’s dark prince.

In a shocking turn of entertainment events, Kris Allen was named this year’s “American Idol” winner Wednesday night, leaving San Diego’s black-clad, eye-liner-sporting Adam Lambert to settle for second place.

“I don’t even know what to feel right now. This is crazy,” the startled Allen said after host Ryan Seacrest pulled his name out of the sealed envelope.

Allen came from behind late in the season with some powerful performances that helped vault him past Lambert and No. 3 finisher Danny Gokey, who both had been picked as favorites early in the competition. After Tuesday night’s final performance show at the Nokia Theatre, Lambert was pegged as the man to beat.

“I want my vote back!” said Donna Abbot of Poway, outside the official viewing party organized by Fox at Copley Symphony Hall. “This is so heartbreaking.”

Party host and former “Idol” contestant Carly Smithson said many factors contributed to voting patterns, including region and song choice.

“The Midwest just has an enormous base of voters,” Smithson said. “Also, I noticed the younger kids, the people who vote, sang along with Kris Allen’s song more but didn’t know the words to (Adam’s) KISS song as well.”

The Symphony Hall gathering, one of several “Idol” parties around San Diego, had expected a full house but only attracted about 130 people.

What the audience lacked in numbers, they compensated for in spirit. Shouting, clapping, chanting, sign waving and cheering, much of it organized by the cheerleading squad at Lambert’s alma mater, Mt. Carmel High School, went on as the crowd watched the show two hours before it aired on the West Coast.

If the crowd was disappointed, they didn’t show it when the cameras flashed to a live shot of San Diego after the results were announced.

At Seau’s in Mission Valley, the Adam Lambert Bash was packed all night. “This is absolutely insane for a Wednesday night,” manager Mike Malicdem said.

Junior Seau said he wanted to host the bash because he’s a huge Lambert fan. Though he didn’t want to know the results early, he said, “I already know Adam won in my heart.”

But while Lambert didn’t win, he made off with plenty of glory. With his startling voice and audacious way of making any song his own, Lambert brought a sense of adventure to the eighth season of the Fox TV singing competition. Between his astounding vocals and humble stage presence, Lambert became a favorite with fans and judges alike – even the fans who didn’t want to like him.

“(Lambert) is one of the most original ‘Idols’ ever,” said Anna Gonzalez, a Gokey fan who came to the Nokia Theatre from Gokey’s hometown of Milwaukee. “He’s very gracious. I like that he doesn’t flaunt it. The judges flaunt him more than he flaunts himself. He seems very humble. You can’t dislike the guy.”

While Gonzalez was admiring Lambert in spite of herself, Fletcher Hills resident Lisa Potter and her daughters were standing by the red carpet waving their “San Diego Loves Adam” sign and singing the praises of their hometown hero.

But after Tuesday night’s performances, Potter and her 13-year-old daughter Alexa were so impressed by both Allen and Lambert, they couldn’t vote for either of them.

“They were both so good, it felt wrong to pick,” Potter said. Still, 19-year-old Amanda remained in Lambert’s camp.

It was a happy problem for many members of “Idol” nation, who were blessed with two finalists who were both so good in such different ways. During last night’s show, Allen sounded radio-ready in a laid-back duet with country star Keith Urban. Lambert, for his showcase number, was joined by the makeup-happy members of KISS, who dropped down from the ceiling for a rousing medley of head-banging hits.

Allen’s victory came at the end of a two-hour-plus show packed with so many big names that it seemed cruel to think of their performances as just filler.

While America waited, this year’s “Idol” contestants performed with a star-studded guest list including Cindy Lauper, San Diego’s Jason Mraz, Queen Latifah, Fergie and the Black-Eyed Peas, a wheezy Rod Stewart and a banjo-plucking Steve Martin.

Before the show, the ghosts of “Idol” past braved the blazing sun to walk the red carpet, where they talked up their new projects and gave us a glimpse of the people behind the TV faces.

The dreadlocked Jason Castro talked so softly that you couldn’t hear him over the dueling screams of the Allen and Lambert fans. LaKisha Jones was six months pregnant and hankering for some potato salad.

A glowing Mandisa was 85 pounds lighter and feeling confident about Allen. “He’s cute,” she said, “and at the end of the day, it is a popularity contest.”

And sweetie-pie Brooke White was an intimate talker who looked gorgeous in broad daylight. Not surprisingly, last year’s fifth-place finisher was too nice to pick one finalist over the other. But she had some words of encouragement for any contestant who is forced to face a future without the “Idol” title.

“No one really loses on ‘American Idol,’ ” White said with a radiant smile. “I was No. 5, and I didn’t lose.”

Source: Union-Tribune intern Wendy Fry contributed to this story.

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