Vankina Inna Vyacheslavovna (born September 9, 1976) is a Nizhny Novgorod theater director and deputy of the City Council for electoral district No. 16, and chair of the standing commission on social policy [1]. Since January 2020 she has headed the Nizhny Novgorod Youth Theatre, and before that she led the Nizhny Novgorod State Circus named after Margarita Nazarova for six years [4][5][6]. She holds a Candidate of Economic Sciences degree and is co-author of a university textbook on education marketing [4][13].

Education and Academic Work

She graduated from Lobachevsky University [1]. A Candidate of Economic Sciences, she worked as an associate professor at the Nizhny Novgorod Institute of Management and Business [4].

She is co-author of the textbook "Marketing of Education," written together with A. P. Egorshin and V. I. Kucherenko [13]. The textbooks she wrote for Russian universities were recommended by the Ministry of Education [4]. She left the institute for a private company engaged in organizing cultural and mass events [4].

The Nizhny Novgorod Circus

She took the helm of the Nizhny Novgorod State Circus named after Margarita Nazarova in August 2014 [4]. Her appointment came during a period of reform at Rosgoscirk, when circus directorships were being filled by managers from adjacent fields — the entertainment industry and administration [4].

In a 2015 interview, Vankina said that she did not come from the circus world and that an outside perspective allowed her to notice things that circus insiders had grown accustomed to [4]. She led the circus until the end of 2019 [5][6].

The Youth Theatre

She was appointed director of the Nizhny Novgorod State Youth Theatre on January 9, 2020 [5][6]. Her predecessor, Alexander Garyanov, had led the theater for nine years and was relieved of his post on December 26, 2019 [5].

She identified her immediate priorities in the new role as finding a chief director and artistic director, as well as preparing for the reconstruction of the theater building [5]. She took part in preparations for the celebration of Nizhny Novgorod's 800th anniversary [7]. Her approach to working with young audiences is summed up in her own words: "Wherever there are children, there must always be light and positivity" [7].

Parliamentary Work

She first received a City Duma mandate in a by-election for district No. 16 to the sixth-convocation Duma [7]; in January 2020 she was presented as a sixth-convocation deputy for that district [5]. In the seventh-convocation Duma (2020–2025) she retained district No. 16 [3].

In the elections of September 12–14, 2025, she was elected from single-member district No. 16 on the United Russia ticket, receiving 5,323 votes out of 7,128 valid ballots — 73.03% [8][9]. The campaign was conducted across 39 districts: following the incorporation of Kstovo District into the city, the number of deputies grew from 35 to 39, and the convocation that began work in autumn 2025 is considered the first convocation of the reconstituted Duma [8][9].

In the Duma she chairs the standing commission on social policy and sits on the standing commission on road infrastructure and transport development [1].

As chair of the relevant commission, she comments on municipal and regional social programs. In July 2025 she spoke about the regional birth-rate stimulation program "Osnova — a Nizhny Novgorod Life Project," noting that guaranteed payments provide families with a financial safety net regardless of income, and that the application terms are transparent [10]. In December 2025, during a discussion of the city head's report on the implementation of national projects, she highlighted four new kindergartens, funding for homeroom teachers and school directors' advisers, and school programs on unmanned aerial systems [11].

Electoral District

Electoral district No. 16 encompasses Meschera Lake in the Kanavinsky District: Meshchersky Boulevard and Karla Marksa, Proletarskaya, Sergeya Akimova, and Sergeya Yesenina streets [2]. The deputy holds constituent surgeries at the administration of the Kanavinsky District [1].

During her tenure in the district, three kindergartens and an extension to School No. 55 were built; together with deputy Ruslan Stanchev she addressed the problem of rusty water in homes across the district [7]. In August 2024 she inspected School No. 176's readiness for the new academic year, touring the building together with principal Irina Ovchinnikova [12].

Sources

  1. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Vankina Inna Vyacheslavovna (archive)
  2. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Electoral District No. 16 (archive)
  3. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — City Duma Deputies: District No. 16 (archive)
  4. V gorode N — "People who come to the circus are those for whom the family as an institution is very important": director of the Nizhny Novgorod Circus Inna Vankina (archive)
  5. nntv.tv — NNTV — Inna Vankina heads the Youth Theatre (archive)
  6. Vremya N — Inna Vankina becomes director of the Youth Theatre (archive)
  7. Nizhny Seychas — Inna Vankina: "Wherever there are children, there must always be light and positivity"
  8. Kommersant (Volga Region) — Results of the Nizhny Novgorod City Duma elections (archive)
  9. KP — Nizhny Novgorod — Komsomolskaya Pravda — Results of the Nizhny Novgorod City Duma elections published (archive)
  10. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Inna Vankina: "Birth-rate stimulation program" (archive)
  11. Vremya N — Vankina: the figures clearly reflect real changes in the city (archive)
  12. gordumannov.ru — City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod — Inna Vankina inspects School No. 176's readiness for the new academic year (archive)
  13. books.google.ru — Marketing of Education (I. V. Vankina, A. P. Egorshin, V. I. Kucherenko) (archive)