Russian Political Science Association

The Russian Political Science Association (RAPN; Russian: Российская ассоциация политической науки, РАПН) is an all-Russian public organization that brings together professional political scientists from across the Russian Federation. According to its charter, its core purpose is to foster interaction and consolidation of the Russian scholarly community, to integrate Russian scholars into the international political science community, and to develop the infrastructure of the Russian community of political scientists. It traces its lineage to the Soviet Association of Political (State Studies) Sciences, founded in 1960, and was transformed into RAPN in 1990–1991. It has branches in more than 50 Russian regions and counts around a thousand experts from universities, independent research organizations, and units of the Russian Academy of Sciences. RAPN is a member of the International Political Science Association (IPSA). RAPN's activities include asserting professional standards and ethical norms for political scientists, developing the infrastructure of the scholarly community, advancing the scientific foundations and traditions of Russian political science, developing political education and teaching in political science, and raising the expert significance of Russian political science. It organizes national congresses of political scientists, annual all-Russian scientific conferences, regional and international conferences, round tables, and competitions for scholarly works. Its governing bodies are the Board (Pravlenie) and the Scientific Council. The Board's composition was approved at a reporting and election conference on 28 November 2025, with Lidiya Nikolaevna Timofeeva elected chair of the Board at a Board meeting on 26 December 2025. The Scientific Council serves for the 2026–2029 term. RAPN maintains a network of regional branches and a Youth Department (MO RAPN), founded in 2006 at the Fourth All-Russian Congress of Political Scientists. It has been involved in public and expert activities, including participation in an agreement on public observation of elections to the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation. In 2013 it was entrusted with functions of a "Center of Responsibility" of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science, and it received the right to participate in the distribution of quotas for state-funded places at universities. It also maintains international cooperation through IPSA, with Russian political scientists having served on the IPSA Executive Committee from 1973 to 2014 and three RAPN members sitting on the IPSA Council. As of the mid-2010s, RAPN was described by experts as an influential centralized network of experts and researchers whose regional branches function and influence local political elites, and as a "collective mind" of the community of liberal experts. It is characterized as shaping the future generation of Russian researchers. The association continues to hold conferences and events, including a planned conference on "Social Architecture for the Political Consolidation of Society: Ideas, Projects and Practices" in Moscow at the State University of Management on 10–11 December 2026.

The Russian Political Science Association traces its history to the Soviet Association of Political (State Studies) Sciences, which existed from 1960 to 1991. In 1960 the Soviet Association of Political (State Studies) Sciences was created. In 1979 the IPSA World Congress was held in Moscow, and in 1989 political science was officially recognized in the USSR. In 1990–1991 the Soviet Association was transformed into the Russian Political Science Association (RAPN). According to researcher D. M. Vorobyev, in the 1990s and early 2000s the emerging Russian political science community split into two groups: the first included scholars engaged in research and university teachers (the so-called "masters"), and the second consisted of practitioners (the so-called "craftsmen") who served political processes. RAPN became the institutional expression of the first group. In 1998 the First All-Russian Congress of Political Scientists was held, and in 2001 RAPN was registered as an All-Russian Public Organization. In 2013 the association was entrusted with the functions of a "Center of Responsibility" of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science. According to D. M. Vorobyev, while 200 delegates participated in the All-Russian Political Science Conference in 1994, by 2004 RAPN united about 400 full members and had 54 regional branches. By 2014 RAPN was present in 54 regions and counted about 1,000 members, predominantly heads or leading staff of social science departments at regional universities. In 2006, within the Fourth All-Russian Congress of Political Scientists, the founding meeting of the Youth Department of the Russian Political Science Association (MO RAPN) was held; by 2014 the Youth Department had 250 members in 21 Russian regions. RAPN's research activities have included the following areas: contemporary Russian ideological and symbolic space; civic and political practices in contemporary Russia; human rights; party organization and competition under "non-democratic" regimes; public policy in the context of Russian modernization; human capital in political elites; political communication studies; the phenomenon of analytical communities in public policy; and the contemporary Russian political class. In terms of influence, experts of the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies (2014) considered RAPN a centralized network of experts and researchers whose regional branches actually function and influence local political elites. Experts characterized RAPN as the "collective mind" of the community of liberal experts. RAPN de facto shapes the future generation of Russian researchers, meaning it can influence and even form the Russian expert community. According to RISS experts, by 2014 RAPN was an influential organization that included most "well-known Russian political scientists and experts" and almost all social science departments of universities in Russian regions. In 2013 RAPN received the right to participate in the distribution of quotas for state-funded places at universities. Internationally, in 1955 Soviet social scientists first participated in a congress of the International Political Science Association (IPSA). The organizational form of participation of Soviet and then Russian political scientists in IPSA congresses was the Soviet Association of Political (State Studies) Sciences and then RAPN. Russian political scientists were on the IPSA Executive Committee from 1973 to 2014. Three RAPN members sit on the IPSA Council. In the 1990s RAPN was represented within IPSA by the well-known Russian political scientist E. B. Shestopal, who was twice elected to the IPSA Executive Committee and was its vice-president, as well as by V. V. Smirnov and T. G. Parkhalina. From 2012 to 2014 M. V. Ilyin was vice-president of IPSA. Russian political scientists constantly participated in IPSA congresses after the Moscow Congress (1979). The largest number of participants from Russia was at the Madrid congress (2012), attended by more than 60 scholars. In 2015, MGIMO rector Academician A. V. Torkunov, speaking at the Seventh All-Russian Congress of Political Scientists, expressed the view that RAPN is not merely the oldest professional association but also has international recognition. RAPN's governing bodies are the Board and the Scientific Council. The President of the Soviet Association of Political Sciences in 1973–1991 was G. H. Shakhnazarov. Presidents of RAPN have included corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences G. H. Shakhnazarov (1991–1994), corresponding member of the RAS A. V. Dmitriev (1994–1997), Dr. of Political Sciences M. V. Ilyin (1997–2001), Academician Yu. S. Pivovarov (2001–2003), and Dr. of Political Sciences A. I. Nikitin (2004–2008). The Board's composition was approved at a reporting and election conference on 28 November 2025, with Lidiya Nikolaevna Timofeeva elected chair of the Board on 26 December 2025. The Scientific Council serves for the 2026–2029 term.

• 2026

  Planned conference 'Social Architecture for the Political Consolidation of Society' in Moscow, 10–11 December

• 2025

  Board composition approved at reporting and election conference on 28 November; Lidiya Timofeeva elected chair on 26 December

• 2013

  RAPN entrusted with functions of 'Center of Responsibility' of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science; received right to participate in distribution of state-funded university quotas

• 2006

  Founding meeting of the Youth Department (MO RAPN) at the Fourth All-Russian Congress of Political Scientists

• 2001

  RAPN registered as an All-Russian Public Organization

• 1998

  First All-Russian Congress of Political Scientists held

• 1991

  Soviet Association transformed into the Russian Political Science Association (RAPN)

• 1989

  Political science officially recognized in the USSR

• 1979

  IPSA World Congress held in Moscow

• 1960

  Soviet Association of Political (State Studies) Sciences created

National professional association and expert network for Russian political scientists, affiliated with IPSA.

• All-Russian Congress of Political Scientists

  National congress of the Russian political science community.

• Annual all-Russian scientific conference

  Annual conference organized by RAPN.

• RAPN scientific works competition

  Competition for works by Russian scientists.

• Regional branches

  Network of branches in more than 50 Russian regions.

• Youth Department (MO RAPN)

  Youth wing founded in 2006.

1. 1РАПН official websiterapn.ru
2. 2О нас — РАПНrapn.ru
3. 3Russian Political Science Association — Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4Российская ассоциация политической науки — Wikipedia (Russian)ru.wikipedia.org