I remember I was rooting for LaChanze that year, and no one thought she'd win. I didn't like Patti Lupone in Sweeney(that people on this BWW said she was winning for sure), Sutton Foster in Drowsy Chaperone(the show had a huge buzz I never got) and the amazing Kelli O'Hara was in a show I didn't enjoy where she didn't really show her talent(The Pajama Game), Chita Rivera also had big chances of winning, since she is a Broadway favorite. Anyways, I think both Montego and LaChanze are in the same category, both their voices crack at times, and acting-wise I think they are in the same level.
But I prefer Montego because LaChanze barely showed up in TCP.
"People have their opinions and that doesn't mean that their opinions are wrong or right. I just take it with a grain of salt because opinions are like as*holes, everyone has one".
-Felicia Finley-