Kimble Sutherland

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Kimble Sutherland (born May 15, 1966 in London, Ontario) is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a New Democratic Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1995.

Sutherland was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1990 provincial election in the rural constituency of Oxford, defeating both Liberal incumbent Charlie Tatham and a Progressive Conservative candidate by over 2,500 votes. He was the first candidate of a social democratic party ever to win election in this riding.

The NDP under Bob Rae won an unexpected majority government in this election, and elected many Member of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) who had little experience in politics and no expectation of winning. Sutherland may have had the most improbable background of any newly-elected MPP. He was only 24 years old at the time, and was studying Political Science at the University of Western Ontario. Sutherland had been elected student council president at UWO prior to his provincial election, and actually served in that position in the 1989-1990 year. During the summer of 1990, his job had been as a vendor at London's Labatt Park, selling hot dogs at baseball games. He agreed to run for the NDP in 1990, after a riding association member broached the possibility with him during a ball game. He first became active in politics in 1981, when he joined the local NDP riding executive during a provincial campaign. Sutherland also had a labour background, having served as a shop steward with United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1977 while working at the Zehrs grocery store in Ingersoll.

On election night, he went to bed before the results were announced, as he did not expect to win his seat. He learned of his election when he was awoken the next morning by reporters at his front door.

Sutherland served as a parliamentary assistant to three cabinet ministers from 1991-195 There was some speculation that he would be appointed to cabinet late in the Rae government's mandate, but this never came to pass.

The NDP were defeated in the 1995 provincial election, although Sutherland managed to achieve a credible second-place finish in Oxford against Progressive Conservative Ernie Hardeman.

Sutherland served as the Executive Director of the United Way in Oxford and Brant from 1997 to 2007.