Smotrakova Natalya Borisovna (born 8 January 1964) is a deputy of the Regional Legislative Assembly of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast of the VI and VII convocations from "United Russia," chair of the committee on social affairs [4][6]. A career municipal official: before her election she rose from the administration of the Prioksky District to deputy head of the Nizhny Novgorod city administration for social affairs [2][3]. In the 2026 influence rating of Legislative Assembly deputies compiled by the news agency "Nizhny Seychas" she placed ninth, in the "strong influence" group [6].
Biography
She was born on 8 January 1964 in the settlement of Sosva, Berezovsky District, Tyumen Oblast. In 1985 she graduated from the Kuibyshev State Institute of Culture, and in 1999 from the Saint Petersburg State Academy of Theatre Arts [1].
She built her career in municipal service in the Priokskiy District of Nizhny Novgorod: she worked in the district administration, rising to deputy head of the district administration, while simultaneously chairing the territorial election commission (TEC) of the Priokskiy District [2][3].
Scandal at the 2014 gubernatorial election
At the election of the governor of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast on 14 September 2014, a Central Election Commission (CEC) inspection found violations in the establishment of 35 polling stations at places of temporary voter residence: information about them had not been passed to the city police department, so the police did not provide security for the voting premises and election documentation, nor did they ensure safety and order at these stations on election day [7]. All 35 stations nationwide found with such violations were in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast; the complaints concerned seven district TECs, including the Priokskiy one [3][7].
The CEC recommended removing the chairs of all seven implicated TECs from office [7]. In January 2015 Smotrakova filed a resignation and left the post of chair of the Priokskiy District TEC, retaining her position in the district administration [3].
Outside parliament
From 24 February 2016 she served as acting deputy head of the Nizhny Novgorod city administration for social affairs on the team of city manager Sergei Belov. She was tasked with the city's participation in the federal program to eliminate second shifts in schools and, in her own words, with "optimizing social institutions" [2].
In the Legislative Assembly
In September 2016 she was elected deputy of the VI convocation of the Legislative Assembly for single-mandate constituency No. 9 (Priokskiy District), at the time of the election holding the post of deputy head of the Nizhny Novgorod city administration [4].
In the VII convocation she chairs the committee on social affairs and belongs to the "United Russia" faction [1][6]. Her core issue is the "Osnova" ("Foundation") demographic program (a basic parental income): in 2025, 8,076 families received program certificates, by April 2026 payments were going to nearly 14,000 families, and in May 2026 deputies expanded the use of the funds to cover attached (townhouse-type) housing [5]. In the 2026 influence rating of ZSNO deputies by "Nizhny Seychas" she placed ninth, in the "strong influence" group [6].
What remains to be clarified
The exact dates and positions held in the Priokskiy District administration, awards, and income declarations: the official profile on zsno.ru is unavailable due to geo-blocking.
Sources
- ideputat.er.ru — Voter — Deputy ("United Russia") — Smotrakova Natalya Borisovna (archive)
- NN.RU — New deputy of Sergei Belov to take up "optimizing social institutions"
- Nizhny Seychas — A Nervous TEC: on the "dismissals" of the implicated chairs (archive)
- Vremya N — 26 new deputies join the Nizhny Novgorod Oblast Legislative Assembly of the VI convocation. Full list (archive)
- Vremya N — Smotrakova: supporting families remains our unconditional priority (archive)
- Nizhny Seychas — Influence rating of ZSNO deputies
- cikrf.ru — Central Election Commission of Russia — Resolution of 21 January 2015 No. 268/1621-6 "On deficiencies in the activity of election commissions of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast" (archive)