Will working on a political campaign affect my active EDD claim? Need to know if I can resume benefits after campaign ends

Working on a political campaign won't automatically cancel your entire claim. Your claim remains open for one year from the date you filed (your benefit year). When you start working, you should report your earnings when you certify. If you earn too much to receive benefits, you simply won't get a payment for those weeks, but your claim stays open. When the campaign ends, you can resume certifying, reporting zero income, and EDD will start paying benefits again as long as: 1. You're still within your benefit year 2. You haven't exhausted your maximum benefit amount 3. You're still meeting eligibility requirements (available for work, actively seeking work, etc.) Make sure to accurately report all earnings during certification. EDD considers political campaign work regular employment, not volunteer work.

BE CAREFUL!!!! I did something similar last year and it turned into a NIGHTMARE! I worked a 6-week contract job and when it ended, EDD flagged my account for an eligibility interview because they thought I quit or got fired!!! I waited 8 WEEKS for the interview and couldn't get benefits during that time! Had to call them like 50 times before someone finally fixed it. Make sure you have documentation showing the job was ALWAYS temporary with a set end date!!!!

This specific situation happened to me in 2023. Here's exactly what to do: 1. When you start working, continue certifying but report your earnings. If you earn too much, you'll get $0 for those weeks but your claim stays active. 2. When certifying during employment, answer "Yes" to "Did you work?" and report all earnings, even if it means getting $0 that week. 3. After the campaign ends, continue certifying normally. On the first certification after the job ends, when it asks why you're no longer working there, select "Job ended" or "Temporary/seasonal work ended" (not quit or fired). 4. You might get flagged for an eligibility interview, but if you have documentation showing the job was always temporary (like an offer letter stating campaign work through election day), you'll be fine. Your benefit year lasts for 12 months from when you initially filed, regardless of whether you're claiming benefits every week. You'll still have access to whatever remaining balance you had before taking the campaign job. Pro tip: Take screenshots of all your certifications in case you need to reference them later.

Not sure if this helps but i worked for census bureau for 6 weeks last year (also govt work) while on unemployment. when it ended i just went back to regular certifying. they did schedule interview but then canceled it when they saw my last day of work matched what census told them. so make sure ur last day matches what employer reports!!

I've helped several people navigate similar situations. One thing not mentioned yet - if the campaign pays you as a 1099 contractor rather than W-2 employee, things get more complicated. You'd technically be self-employed which has different reporting requirements for unemployment. Ask the campaign how they plan to classify you. If it's W-2, follow the advice above. If 1099, you'll need to report net earnings (after business expenses) which gives you more flexibility but requires more documentation. Also, if anyone is struggling to get through to EDD about their claim status or interview, I recently discovered a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that connects you directly to an EDD representative without the endless redial loop. They have a demo video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10?si=TSwYbu_GOwYzt9km. Really helped when I needed to sort out a similar situation with temporary work affecting my claim.

wait so if u make too much money in a week do u still have to certify? or can u just skip certification for those weeks?

Also make sure you talk to the campaign about how many hours you'll be working!!! If it's full-time then yeah you'll get $0 from EDD, but if it's part-time you might still qualify for REDUCED benefits depending on how much you earn each week. The formula is something like your weekly benefit amount minus (earnings minus $25 × 0.75) = partial payment. Sorry if that's confusing - EDD has a calculator somewhere on their site.

i think ur overthinking this tbh. ive worked like 3 temp jobs while on unemployment. just report ur earnings honestly and ull be fine. its not like ur doing anything wrong

One final tip: If your campaign job pays significantly more than your weekly benefit amount, your weekly certifications might show "excessive earnings" while you're working. This is normal and doesn't impact your ability to collect benefits after the job ends (as long as you're still in your benefit year and have a remaining balance). Also, keep in mind the EDD work search requirement still applies after your campaign job ends - you'll need to look for and document at least 3 job contacts per week. The EDD can request these records even months later, so keep a log of your applications.