# Kimberly du Buclet

Kimberly Neely du Buclet is an American politician. A Democratic member of the Illinois House of Representatives, she also formerly served on the board of commissioners for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD).

## Early life and education

De Buclet attended high school at University of Chicago Laboratory Schools. She also received a Bachelor of Science in marketing from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign and a Master of Business Administration in marketing from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

## First tenure in the Illinois House of Representatives (2011–2013)

Du Buclet represented the 26th District in the Illinois House of Representatives from 2011 to 2013. She was appointed to her seat in May 2011 after former incumbent William D. Burns stepped down as District 26 representative to become Chicago's 4th Ward alderman. She did not run for a full term in the 2012 election.
du Buclet worked on sentencing reform legislation that was later finalized in 2012 in the State Senate as Senate Bill 3349. The bill reduced the minimum lengths required for supervised release (parole) that are imposed for certain felonies.
During her first stint in the State House, du Buclet's committee assignments included Health Care Availability Access, Small Business Empowerment & Workforce, Higher Education, Appropriations-Human Services, Health & Healthcare Disparities, and Tourism & Conventions.

## MWRD Board of Commissioners (2018–2023)

In 2018, du Buclet won a special election to finish the remaining two years of an unexpired term on the Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago. The seat had been vacated by Cynthia Santos, and had been held by interim appointee David Walsh prior to Neely's assumption of office. In 2020, du Buclet won the Democratic primary on March 17, 2020 for reelection to a full-term on the board in an election to fill the three seats on the board with expiring terms. She was reelected, winning the most votes of any candidate in the general election. On January 5, 2023, she was elected by the board of commissioners to serve as its vice president. Her tenure ended after she was appointed on May 13, 2023 to again serve in the Illinois House of Representatives.
In 2023, while serving on the board Du Buclet was appointed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to its 24-member Local Government Advisory Committee.

## Second tenure in the Illinois House of Representatives (2023–present)

On May 13, 2023, du Buclet was appointed to fill the 5th district seat in the Illinois House of Representatives that was vacated after her predecessor Lamont Robinson became a Chicago alderman. Per Illinois law, since Robinson was elected as a Democrat her appointment was decided by the Democratic committeepeople representing areas overlapping with the district.
The 5th district mainly represents portions of South Side neighborhoods (including Woodlawn, Washington Park, South Shore, and Englewood), and also small portions of The Loop, South Loop and River North.
du Buclet introduced legislation that aimed to hold corporations accountable for their emissions. She also introduced legislation to create a state holiday memorializing Emmett Till.
du Buclet is seeking reelection in 2024. Ahead of the Democratic primary, she was endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union and the Cook County College Teachers Union (both being local chapters of the American Federation of Teachers), as well as the endorsement of AFSCME Council 31. She won the primary, defeating her sole opponent 75.7% to 24.3%. She faces a Republican challenger in the general election. She was endorsed in the general election by the editorial board of the Chicago Tribune, Planned Parenthood Illinois Action, Equality Illinois and Giffords.

## Electoral history

Democratic primary for the 2018 MWRD Board of Commissioners special election for the seat vacated by Cynthia M. Santos :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Kimberly Neely du Buclet | 561,695 | 96.48 |
| | Write-in | Others | 20,473 | 3.52 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 582,168 | 100 |
2018 MWRD Board of Commissioners special election for the seat vacated by Cynthia M. Santos :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Kimberly Neely du Buclet | 1,173,498 | 77.07 |
| | Green | Rachel Wales | 349,053 | 22.93 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,522,551 | 100 |
2020 MWRD District Board of Commissioners Democratic primary :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Kimberly Neely du Buclet (incumbent) | 346,370 | 18.02 |
| | Democratic | M. Cameron “Cam” Davis (incumbent) | 288,471 | 15.01 |
| | Democratic | Eira L. Corral Sepúlveda | 242,055 | 12.59 |
| | Democratic | Patricia Theresa Flynn | 222,191 | 11.56 |
| | Democratic | Heather Boyle | 216,447 | 11.26 |
| | Democratic | Frank Avila (incumbent) | 215,741 | 11.22 |
| | Democratic | Michael G. Grace | 157,088 | 8.17 |
| | Democratic | Mike Cashman | 99,319 | 5.17 |
| | Democratic | Shundar Lin | 65,757 | 3.42 |
| | Democratic | Deyon Dean | 61,102 | 3.18 |
| | Write-in | Others | 7,627 | 0.40 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,922,168 | |
2020 MWRD Board of Commissioners election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Kimberly Neely du Buclet (incumbent) | 1,288,586 | 28.89 |
| | Democratic | M. Cameron “Cam” Davis (incumbent) | 1,141,803 | 25.60 |
| | Democratic | Eira L. Corral Sepúlveda | 1,028,057 | 23.05 |
| | Green | Tammie Felicia Vinson | 324,905 | 7.28 |
| | Green | Troy Antonio Hernandez | 339,633 | 7.61 |
| | Green | Rachel Wales | 337,272 | 7.56 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 4,460,256 | 100 |