In the second wave of nominations, nominations that are not part of the "big five" that are broadcast live, All My Children and Guiding Light both did quite well.
Just two of the young women nominated in the Outstanding Younger Actress category received nominations last year. The remaining three are all first time nominees. All My Children's Eden Riegel (Bianca Montgomery) picked up her second consecutive nomination for playing Erica Kane's lesbian daughter and Kristina Sisco (Abigail Williams) also picked up her second straight nod. The Bold and the Beautiful's Jennifer Finnigan (Bridget Forrester) replaced her castmate and last year's winner in the category, Adrienne Frantz (Ambrosia Moore), on the ballot. Guiding Light placed two actresses in the field: the soon-to-be-departing Jessica Jimenez (Cataline Quesada) and newcomer Lindsey McKeon (Marah Lewis). Interestingly enough, McKeon just joined Guiding Light in November, meaning that she had just two months on eligibility to qualify for the nomination.
The Bold and the Beautiful's Justin Torkildsen (Rick Forrester) earned a repeat nomination in the Outstanding Younger Actor category. Torkildsen was the winner in the category last year. AMC's Jesse McCarntney – who is no longer on the show – received a second nomination as well. General Hospital's two-year drought in the acting nominations ended with a nod for Jacob Young (Lucky Spencer). Young previously played the role for which Torkildsen has been nominated. Guiding Light's Jordi Vilasuso earned his very first nomination as did Port Charles' Brian Presley (Jack Ramsey). Presley's nomination was the sole acting nomination for the show.
All My Children, As The World Turns, One Life to Live and Passions earned nominations for Outstanding Writing. As The World Turns won the award last year.
There is a new category of note this year – Outstanding Achievement in Casting for a Drama Series. The nominees are all casting directors of their respective shows. This year's nominees – the very first in the category – are AMC's Judy Blye Wilson, GH's Mark Teschner and Passions' Jacklynn Briskey (Passions)
In the creative arts and technical achievement categories AMC and GL both amassed eight nominations. General Hospital earned six nominations, with two coming in the Best Original Song category.
Port Charles earned a nod in the Main Title Design category for its use of character names in its opening credits.
READ COVERAGE OF THE "BIG FIVE" CATEGORIES
REVIEW THE COMPLETE LIST OF THIS YEAR'S NOMINEES