From collection Candidates
Minnie Jean Nielson was elected County Superintendent of Schools for Barnes County, North Dakota in 1906. In 1918 she decided to run for the office of State Superintendent of Public Instruction, North Dakota and was endorsed by the Democrats, the Lincoln League, and the Independent Voters Association. Nielson was attacked by her opponent nominated by the Non-Partison League (NPL), a party powerful in North Dakota politics. However she gained an ally in William Langer, the state attorney general. Nielson defeated the incumbent Sate Superintendent, Neil C. MacDonald by 5,500 votes. MacDonald and his staff refused to leave the office, claiming that Nielson, as a woman, was not qualified. The state supreme court quickly ruled in Nielson's favor in early 1919 and MacDonald was escorted from the office. NPL politicians created a Board of Administration to oversee educational policies in the state which usurped much of the former work of the State Superintendent's office. The NPL lost political power in the state over connections with Socialism during a national "Red Scare" and Nielson, who retained support from the Independent Voters Association, was re-elected in 1920. That year voters supported a measure to transfer much of the original powers back to the office of the State Superintendent's office. Nielson was elected again in 1922 and 1924, serving in the office until 1926. She continued her work in education policies, especially against illiteracy on the state and national levels until 1950.
