Teen registers Popeyes' customers to vote as they wait for chicken sandwiches
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fried chicken with a side of community pride, coming on up.
One teenager in North Carolina is being praised for his civic engagement after surprising customers at a local Popeyes with voter registration paperwork for an all-important schoolboard election.
Over the weekend, David Ledbetter took to a Charlotte location of the fried chicken chain to promote voter registration ahead of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools election on Nov. 5. The young man, 17, was personally petitioning for candidate Stephanie Sneed.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}POPEYES' CHICKEN SANDWICH IS SURPRISE HIT: 'WE DIDN’T EXPECT THIS TYPE OF REACTION'
Though Ledbetter is not yet old enough to vote, he’s seriously committed to the cause.
“I believe that it is our duty to vote as American citizens and it would be wrong not to exercise our political voice," the rising high school senior told WKYC.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I decided to register people to vote after I saw there was a lack of young people politically involved," he added.
Over the weekend, David Ledbetter took to a Charlotte location of the fried chicken chain to promote voter registration ahead of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools election (iStock)
On Aug. 24, Ledbetter proudly registered 16 people to vote, he said, seizing the moment to capitalize on foot traffic at Popeyes, reportedly thanks to their popular new chicken sandwich.
"It feels very good,” the teen told WSOC-TV of the feat. “I always want to engage the community… and, you know, voter registration is very important in my opinion so it felt amazing."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER
“I always want to engage the community… and, you know, voter registration is very important in my opinion so it felt amazing," David Ledbetter, pictured, said. (David Ledbetter)
A photo of Ledbetter’s Saturday stunt has since gone viral on Instagram, racking up over 4,600 likes to date.
“Leveraging the chicken sandwich for democracy,” one commenter cheered.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Very sharp idea, thanks for your work,” another agreed.
An image of Popeyes' new chicken sandwich. (Popeyes)
As for his personal preference in the Louisiana-inspired chain’s rumored beef with Chick-fil-A over the new menu item, Ledbetter said the winner is a no-brainer in his book.
“The Popeyes sandwich is better. I'm sorry,” he told WSOC-TV of the “spicy” hit.
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