[1] The son of Swedish-speaking immigrants from Finland, Nygard was born in Iron Belt, Wisconsin, and grew up in Crosby, Minnesota.

In the November 1932 general election, he ran unsuccessfully for state railroad and warehouse commissioner, polling 9,458 votes statewide.

In the December 6, 1932, village election, he won the mayoralty on the Workers Ticket with 529 votes, against 359 for incumbent F. H. Kraus and 301 for Ernest B. Erickson; he was inaugurated on January 3, 1933.

Saying that he was "under the strict discipline of the Communist party", Nygard incorporated the Workers Advisory Committee into the municipal government by allowing it to pass bills before they went before the village council.

On a controversial trip to New York City in 1933, he was accused of exaggerating his influence to Communist audiences and boasted of his challenges to the authority of Crosby police and businessmen.