Kimiko Burton, formerly Kimiko Burton-Cruz,^[2] is an American attorney and government official. Burton is serving a second term as a member of the California State Personnel Board after having been reappointed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2019.^[3] From 2001 to 2003, Burton served as Public Defender of San Francisco.^[4][5]

Burton is the daughter of John Burton, a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives and past chair of the California Democratic Party, and Michele Burton.^[2] Both her uncle, Phillip Burton, and her aunt, Sala Burton, served in the U.S. House. Burton's grandmother was a Hawaiian woman of Japanese descent.^[6]

Burton graduated from Lowell High School and received her bachelor's degree from the University of California, Davis. Prior to attending law school, Burton studied in Kyoto, Japan at the Kyoto Japanese Language School (Japanese: Kyoto Nihongo Gakko), where she taught both English and French to fellow students. Burton received her Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1990.^[7][8]

In the 1990s, Burton worked in the San Francisco Public Defender's Office. Burton later left the office to work at the California State Board of Equalization, where she served as counsel to Johan Klehs.^[6][9]

Burton was married to school board member Emilio Cruz.^[2][15] She currently lives with her two children in San Francisco, and serves on the board of directors of the John Burton Foundation for Children Without Homes.^[7]