Just saw after work that another disabled person on Social Security contacted me about wanting to run for office and asking if it's possible to do so without risking benefits, and that means I need to contact them on Monday and break the bad news.

Damn. #CripTheVote

I hate that SSA views disability in such a backward way that they think disabled people on social security shouldn't run for office because to them, that's a sign that you aren't "really disabled." #CripTheVote

It means that this very important facet of democracy, running for elected office, is forbidden for so many disabled people because they have to choose between benefits that support their life and independence, and serving their community. #CripTheVote

For folks who want to know how I know this, I asked the Social Security Administration whether people on Social Security can run for office and this was their answer https://advocacymonitor.com/elevate-blog-can-you-run-for-office-if-youre-on-social-security/

Some folks are asking why someone who is able to hold elected office isn't able to work.

Please understand that running for office isn't just Congress, but the vast majority of elected offices are local. They are often unpaid and have a substantially lower time commitment.

Serving on a school board or a town council is for a few hours a few days a month drastically different than holding a steady job for 40 hours a week.

Another thing: people are saying "I didn't know this!" I had looked for this info EVERYWHERE on the SSA site. Couldn't find it. I specifically had to reach out to several departments to ask them if people on SSI or SSDI can run for office.

This is bad because as someone who runs a small campaign training for disabled people, I had been approached by countless disabled people who wanted to run for office and who didn't know if they could be risking the loss of their benefits or worse--investigation for fraud.

I published this info on my workplace's website as a part of a small blog I run because disabled people on SSI or SSDI NEED to be able to make an informed decision when considering running for office.

Also I highly encourage folks to read the full answer linked in the blog above. It contains nuance in the full answer that concise tweets can't reflect, going over the various ways that campaigning or holding elected office can impact your benefits.

“We are unable to provide you with a definitive answer because disability determinations are necessarily fact-specific and must be performed on a case-by-case basis...we can offer you general information about how such activities may affect eligibility or entitlement to benefits"

If you are on Social Security, I would suggest that you take a full look at the answer they gave me, reach out to SSA yourself, and/or talk to a benefits lawyer.

I didn't expect my tweet to take off and I want folks to have the full info, not just what I tweeted.