- Steve Miller

Denny's today kicked off its "America Votes for Real" contest, as part of which John McCain and Barack Obama look-alikes are asked to submit a video of themselves advocating "real breakfast."

The Denny's (Vote4real.com) contest is looking for participants that preferably resemble and sound like America's presidential contenders. Their video—30 seconds tops—must acknowledge competitors' offerings, such as fast food breakfast meals.

"The 'Vote for Real' contest is a natural extension of our campaign to encourage consumers to discern between the real breakfast experience of Denny's versus premade, assembled food at fast-food stores," said Elizabeth Geer, Denny's senior director of advertising and brand communications, in a statement.

The videos can be submitted via YouTube at www.youtube.com/group/vote4real.com, through July 31. The top impersonators of each candidate will join the "Vote for Real" ballot, and a vote for two winners (one of Obama and one of McCain) will be cast from Aug. 5 to Aug. 15. The winners will receive a free meal every month at Denny's until the next presidential election in 2012.

Denny's spent $58 on ads in 2007 and $23 million through April, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus. The restaurant chain also will hold some in-store promotions for the contest in select cities like Denver and Minneapolis. It plans to have the winners appear in person at those locations, said a company rep.

Other marketing plays on presidential elections have been absent so far this year, although most campaigns with a presidential theme wait to go full-throttle until after the national political conventions. In 2004, Captain Morgan Rum was ahead of the pack in marketing to the political theme and launched a mock presidential bid by "the captain" that May.