Minister Simoniti holds a doctorate in history. He is a Professor of Mediaeval History at the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ljubljana and author of numerous scientific and expert works in the area of early modern history. In treatises and essays he has also examined the position of the historian in relation to history and problems of Slovenian historiography, and in recent years he has also made significant contributions to the study of the 20th century Slovenian history. His latest Slovenian publication (2003) is Fanfare nasilja ('Fanfare of Violence'). In 2004, he also published a volume, co-written with Dr Peter Štih in Croatia entitled Slovenska povjest do prosvetiteljstva ('Slovenian History before the Enlightenment').

The minister has been actively involved in politics, having managed the electoral campaign of a presidential candidate in 2002. In 2003, he was one of the founders of the civic initiative Something Must Be Done and was a member of the NATO Accession Committee. Since 2004 he has been a member of the Presidency of the Convention for the Republic, and a member of the Board of Experts of the Slovenian Democratic Party responsible for culture.

Minister Simoniti speaks English and German.