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Teen Turns Long Popeyes Lines Into Opportunity To Register People To Vote

When Popeyes released a new spicy chicken sandwich on August 12, it's doubtful that even they would've anticipated the mania that followed.

Not only did people across social media generate, over $23 million in free advertising for the company in the wake of the release, but that hype translated to intensely long lines at each location.

And as CNN Business would later report, many of the people waiting in those lines would soon discover that the sandwich had sold out nationwide.

But while not everyone waiting at one location in Charlotte, North Carolina likely left with a sandwich, many of them can say they didn't leave empty-handed.

Based on his recent activities, 17-year-old David Ledbetter has made it clear that he's passionate about his community.

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According to HuffPost, he co-founded a nonprofit called Imagine This in 2018 as a means of helping fellow youths prepare for college and for their careers.

Lately, however, he's undertaken a different community project.

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He's currently volunteering to assist Stephanie Sneed's local campaign for a Charlotte school board, but both he and Sneed have broader ambitions than simply getting the public to vote for her in November.

Both of them want to stoke people's interest for voting in general.

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As HuffPost reported, Ledbetter and Sneed noticed that only a handful of locals had signed up for early voting in a special congressional election on September 10.

Once it became clear just how many people were lining up at Popeyes for chicken sandwiches, they saw a good opportunity to change that.

And so Ledbetter, Sneed, and some other volunteers headed for a Popeyes location on Saturday and helped dozens of people register to vote.

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They weren't angling to get people on board with any particular candidate, but rather provided a chance to register as well as information about early voting and who would run in upcoming elections.

As Ledbetter told HuffPost, "There were a few individuals who weren’t interested in voting, but overall there were not negative reactions. Usually it was individuals who wanted to vote and who we managed to register."

Sneed noted that people were particularly impressed that Ledbetter wanted to inspire people to vote despite not being old enough to do so himself.

Instagram | @sneed4schoolboard

Ledbetter is also hoping to extend that inspiration towards political involvement to other young people, whose interests aren't often the focus of politicians' campaigns.

As he said, "I think it’s very important because that’s the way to exercise your opinion, especially those who want to improve the local community, where decisions made impact the people directly."

h/t: HuffPost