 He married Véronica Labe, a notary, in 1988; they had two children.He entered politics as a student activist in the , a right-wing party and later became a member of the Reformist Movement (MR).Simonet served as mayor of Anderlecht from 2000 until his death and as Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region from 15 July 1999 to 18 October 2000.