Maria Aleksandrovna Samodelkina (born June 16, 1995, Nizhny Novgorod) is a Nizhny Novgorod public figure and organizer of the volunteer movement, a deputy of the City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod of the seventh convocation (2020–2025) for single-member constituency No. 14 in Kanavino District [1][2][3]. Since 2018 she has headed the Nizhny Novgorod regional branch of the all-Russian movement "Volunteers of Victory"; in 2023–2025 she led the ANO "Volunteer Center of Nizhny Novgorod Region"; and since 2026 she has served as vice-rector of the Corporate University of the Government of Nizhny Novgorod Region (KUPNO) [1][4][3][5].

Biography and education

She was born on June 16, 1995, in Nizhny Novgorod [1][3]. Until the age of seven she lived in a village; in an interview with Nizhegorodskaya Pravda she linked her path into volunteering to the deaths of close relatives — her grandfather and grandmother — after which she began helping elderly people [6].

She studied at Lobachevsky University: between 2013 and 2017 she completed a bachelor's degree in Trade, then three master's programs at the same university — Public and Municipal Administration (2017–2019), Organizational Economics (2019–2021), and Law (2021–2024). Concurrently, in 2019–2021, she completed a master's program at the Nizhny Novgorod Agricultural Academy in Soil Science, Agrochemistry, and Agroecology. She also completed an MBA program in Strategic Management [3].

Work and public activities before election

From 2017 to 2019 she served as director of the Poligraf House of Culture, and in 2018–2019 she headed the Politbook information and analytics agency. Since 2019 she has taught at the Institute of Economics and Entrepreneurship of Lobachevsky University [3].

Since 2018 she has led the Nizhny Novgorod regional branch of the all-Russian public movement Volunteers of Victory; in 2018–2019 she headed the regional branch of the Young Guard of United Russia. In 2019–2020 she was a member of the Public Chamber of Nizhny Novgorod, in 2019–2021 she served as chair of the Youth Parliament under the Legislative Assembly of Nizhny Novgorod Region, and since 2019 she has been a member of the Public Council under the regional parliament [3].

In 2019–2020 she headed the district coordination center in the Volga Federal District for volunteer support of events marking the 75th anniversary of Victory. She identifies the branch's primary focus as supporting veterans of the Great Patriotic War: each of the 931 war veterans living in the Region has been assigned a dedicated volunteer [6][3].

City Duma Deputy

Elections for deputies of the seventh convocation of the Nizhny Novgorod City Duma were held on September 13, 2020; 35 deputies were elected from 35 single-member constituencies, with United Russia winning 26 seats, the Communist Party 4, A Just Russia and the Liberal Democratic Party 2 each, and the Party of Growth 1 [7]. Samodelkina was elected from constituency No. 14 in Kanavinsky District and joined the United Russia faction [2][8][9].

In the Duma, she served on two standing committees — on social policy and on local self-government [1][8]. She held personal reception hours weekly on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 15:00 to 21:00; on other days, a deputy's aide conducted reception, and telephone and electronic helplines were also available [8].

In 2022, 483 residents of the district contacted the deputy. Of these, 409 requests (84.7%) were resolved favorably, 32 remained under review, and 37 resulted in a consultation. Two-thirds of requests (67.9%) concerned housing and utilities, 11.2% concerned territorial improvement, and 8.1% concerned financial assistance [8].

The one million rubles allocated to the district in 2022 was distributed among seven municipal institutions in Kanavinsky District: repair work at Kindergarten No. 6 "Svetlyachok" (180,000 rubles), replacement of window units at Kindergarten No. 14 (100,000 rubles) and School No. 96 (171,000 rubles), installation of fencing and purchase of children's chairs at Kindergarten No. 54 (160,000 rubles), replacement of a window and purchase of a refrigerator cabinet at Kindergarten No. 82 (140,000 rubles), installation of a sports complex at Gymnasium No. 50 (150,000 rubles), and purchase of stage costumes for the "Lyubava" folk song ensemble (99,000 rubles) [8].

  • In her committee work in 2022, she participated in reviewing the city budget for 2023 and the planning period 2024–2025 with respect to programs for the development of education, culture, physical education and sport, youth policy, and targeted support for specific categories of citizens [8];
  • amendments to the Charter of the City of Nizhny Novgorod and to the Regulation on Territorial Public Self-Government [8];
  • amendments to the Regulation on the Organization of Nutrition for Children in Municipal General-Education Organizations [8];
  • amendments to the Regulation on the Commemoration of Outstanding Individuals and Historical Events, as well as the matter of commemorating those killed in the special military operation [8];
  • support measures for non-profit organizations and the city's participation in the regional participatory budgeting project "It's Up to You!" [8].

Projects and Public Work

In December 2021, she joined the Supreme Council of the United Russia party, where she served until 2023; the occasion was the Nizhny Novgorod branch of "Volunteers of Victory" taking first place in the rankings of participants in the party project "Mobile App 'VVERKH'" [10][3].

On July 29, 2023, she became head of the ANO "Volunteer Center of Nizhny Novgorod Region" — an organization established on the initiative of Governor Gleb Nikitin as a platform for developing volunteerism in the region and providing assistance to mobilized servicemen and their families; she led the center until 2025 [4][3].

In April 2023, she reported on her deputy work to residents of District No. 14: the areas mentioned included targeted assistance at personal reception hours, consultations on the "You Decide!" and "Forming a Comfortable Urban Environment" projects, collection and dispatch of humanitarian cargo, and events at the neighborhood center and in courtyard areas [9]. In October 2023, she organized the "24 Frames of Victory" event — film screenings and meetings in schools across the region dedicated to the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the "For Courage" and "For Combat Merit" medals; 2,678 schoolchildren took part in the events [11].

Since 2021, she has led the youth program "Leaders of Nizhny Novgorod Region." In June 2026, she presented the fifth season of the program at the KUPNO platform: 19,836 applications were submitted for selection, 300 participants were selected for training, and the course is designed for 40 weeks [5].

Awards

Commemorative medal "75 Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945" (2020), commemorative medal "For Selfless Contribution to the Organization of the All-Russian Mutual Aid Campaign '#WeAreTogether'" (2021), letters of commendation from the President of Russia (2021, 2022) and a letter of thanks (2023), honorary badge of the Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Region "For Service to People" (2024). Laureate of the Nizhny Novgorod Prize of 2025 [3].

Sources

  1. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Samodelkina Maria Aleksandrovna. Electoral District No. 14 (archive)
  2. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Deputies of the City Duma, 7th Convocation (archive)
  3. samodelkina.rf — Official Website of Maria Samodelkina — About Me: biography, education, professional and public activities, awards (archive)
  4. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Maria Samodelkina Becomes Head of the Volunteer Center of Nizhny Novgorod Region (archive)
  5. nobl.ru — Government of Nizhny Novgorod Region — Fifth Season of the Educational Program "Leaders of Nizhny Novgorod Region" Launches
  6. Nizhegorodskaya Pravda — "My Nizhny": Volunteer Movement Leader Maria Samodelkina (archive)
  7. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Elections to the City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod, Seventh Convocation, Declared Valid (archive)
  8. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Report on the Work of Deputy Maria Samodelkina in 2022 (archive)
  9. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Maria Samodelkina Reports to Residents of Electoral District No. 14 of Kanavinsky District (archive)
  10. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — Maria Samodelkina: "I Am Grateful to All Those Who Helped and Recognized Volunteering as a Priority of Development at the Present Time" (archive)
  11. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Maria Samodelkina Organizes the Campaign "24 Frames of Victory" (archive)