Toward the end of 1920, Patrick M. Casey submitted his resignation from the Board of Administration. He said he was unable to devote the necessary time to the board and that he needed to focus on his job as president of the Equity Cooperative Packing Company outside of Fargo.
In early January 1921, Governor Lynn J. Frazier appointed Joseph I. Cahill to the board to fill Casey’s spot.
Cahill, a former state senator and member of the NPL, was the original sponsor of the Board of Administration bill during the regular session of 1919. Cahill was also the Nonpartisan League's (NPL) unsuccessful candidate for Secretary of State in 1920, losing to incumbent Thomas Hall in the Republican primary.
Back in April 1920, there were rumors that Governor Frazier was going to ask George A. Totten to resign, following the multiple controversies of the board under his leadership. At the time, the NPL was seemingly "cleaning house" and removing problematic officials ahead of the 1920 election to appeal to voters. People who resigned or were removed around this time included:
In Totten's case, the resignation rumors were only rumors. In the summer of 1921, Totten's term as chair of the board came to an end. He remained on the board, however, as his term for that would not expire for another couple of years.
In early August 1921, the board elected Robert T. Muir as its new chair. Muir was one of the board's initial members, previously serving on the defunct State Board of Regents. Muir was also the brother-in-law of William Lemke, who was a leader of the NPL and current Attorney General.
1921 brought some changes to the personnel of the Board of Administration, but the NPL still maintained control over it. Minnie J. Nielson remained the only non-NPL member on the board. However, the NPL's majority on the board would soon come to an end.
A political cartoon, drawn by Thomas H. Foley and appearing in "The Red Flame" (vol. 1, no. 6, April 1920), depicts a man representing North Dakota farmers swatting Nonpartisan League (NPL) flies buzzing around his head. The man references the NPL's declining political power by saying, "These pesky flies are bothering again this year, but they haven't got the bite they used to have." "The Red Flame" often recycled cartoons that had previously been published in the "Nonpartisan Leader," after putting its own anti-NPL twist on it. This cartoon models itself after "Swat the Fly!" which was drawn by John M. Baer for the "Nonpartisan Leader" and appeared in the issue from May 4, 1916 (vol. 2, no. 18, p. 3).
Many of these resources and programs are funded under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.