 McDannold was appointed master in chancery for Brown County in October 1885.He was elected county judge of Brown County in 1886, and re-elected in November 1890; he served until October 2, 1892, when he resigned, having been nominated for the U.S. Congress.McDannold was elected as a Democrat to the Fifty-third Congress (March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1895).