Charlotte Teen Turns Chicken Sandwich War Into Registered Voters

CHARLOTTE, NC — What do you get when you cross a crazy Twitter marketing war and crispy fried poultry? For one enterprising Charlotte teen, the answer is newly registered voters.

Debate over who makes the best fried chicken sandwich in America cranked up to a boil on social media recently following the addition of a new chicken sandwich at Popeye’s earlier this month. (Don't believe us? Check out #chickensandwichwars.) Demand for the crispy chunk of chicken and pickle on a brioche bun has been over the top, according to the restaurant chain, leading to a more than 103 percent surge in traffic to restaurants and the sandwich selling out.

And while it would be easy for most people to grow cranky about the long lines standing between them and a tasty sandwich, enterprising Myers Park rising senior David Ledbetter, 17, saw opportunity. Not even old enough to vote himself, he sprang into action and handed out voter registration information and forms to folks waiting in line.

"We were seeing how long the lines were [at Popeyes] and figured we would try to go get individuals to vote," Ledbetter told CNN. "I was just hoping that the individuals would register to vote."

And, according to WCNC, he did just that, signing up 16 new voters.

"I decided to register people to vote after I saw there was a lack of young people politically involved," Ledbetter told WCNC.

We want to know — who do you think makes the best fried chicken sandwich? Tell us in the Facebook comment section.