Frazier was born in Medford, Minnesota. His family moved to North Dakota when he was 6 years old.
Elected as the gubernatorial candidate of Non-Partisan League in 1917, Frazier's term was plagued with scandal and a grassroots movement began to press for his recall. The movement succeeded, and in 1921 the governor was successfully removed from office. Ragnvald A. Nestos was elected in his place.
After the recall, Frazier was elected in 1922 to the United States Senate as a Republican. He served until losing a bid for re-election in 1940.
See also: 2003 California recall