The 1921 North Dakota gubernatorial recall election was a

recall election A recall election (also called a recall referendum, recall petition or representative recall) is a procedure by which, in certain polities, voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of offi ...

of North Dakota Governor

Lynn Frazier Lynn Joseph Frazier (December 21, 1874January 11, 1947) was an American educator and politician who served as the 12th Governor of North Dakota from 1917 until being recalled in 1921 and later served as a U.S. Senator from North Dakota from 192 ...

in 1921. Frazier was the first U.S.

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

ever successfully recalled from office; there would not be another successful recall of a governor until

California Governor The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

Gray Davis Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 to 2003. In 2003, only a few months into his second term, Davis was recalled and remov ...

was recalled in 2003.

Background

The recall stemmed from the conflict between the allegedly

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

-leaning

Nonpartisan League The Nonpartisan League (NPL) was a left-wing political party founded in 1915 in North Dakota by Arthur C. Townley, a former organizer for the Socialist Party of America. On behalf of small farmers and merchants, the Nonpartisan League advocat ...

, of which Governor Frazier was a member, and the

Independent Voters Association The Independent Voters Association, or IVA, was a North Dakota, United States, political organization. It formed on May 1, 1918, at the height of the Nonpartisan League's influence on the North Dakota Republican Party. The IVA was a conservative, ...

, a

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

and pro-

market Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...

faction. Frazier and his party supported

state ownership State ownership, also called government ownership and public ownership, is the ownership of an industry, asset, or enterprise by the state or a public body representing a community, as opposed to an individual or private party. Public ownershi ...

of industries, while the IVA opposed it. A dispute broke out specifically over government ownership of the

Bank of North Dakota The Bank of North Dakota (BND) is a state-owned, state-run financial institution based in Bismarck, North Dakota. It is the only government-owned general-service bank in the United States. It is the legal depository for all state funds in North ...

and State Mill and Elevator."North Dakota to Vote October 28 on Recall Aimed at Gov. Frazier and Townley League"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', September 17, 1921, p. 1. By September, the campaigners had been able to gather 73,000 names on petitions asking for the recall of Frazier, Attorney General

William Lemke William Frederick Lemke (August 13, 1878 – May 30, 1950) was an American politician who represented North Dakota in the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Republican Party. He was also the Union Party's presidential cand ...

, and Commissioner of Agriculture John Hagan. These men made up the

Industrial Commission {{Distinguish, Industrial Relations Commission The Industrial Commission was a United States government body in existence from 1898 to 1902. It was appointed by President William McKinley to investigate railroad pricing policy, industrial concentr ...

, which acts as a board of directors for the state-owned entities. The date of the recall was set for October 28, 1921.

Results

In the October 28 vote, Ragnvald A. Nestos was elected as governor by a margin of 4,093. He was sworn in on November 23.

References

North Dakota recall North Dakota recall History of North Dakota

1921 Events January * January 2 ** The Association football club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, from Belo Horizonte, is founded as the multi-sports club Palestra Italia by Italian expatriates in First Brazilian Republic, Brazil. ** The Spanish lin ...

North Dakota 1921 October 1921 events Governor of North Dakota {{NorthDakota-election-stub

Background

Results

See also

References