| Paul Kohler | |
| Parliament: | United Kingdom |
| Constituency Mp: | Wimbledon |
| Term Start: | 4 July 2024 |
| Predecessor: | Stephen Hammond |
| Majority: | 12,610 (22.9%) |
| Birth Name: | Paul Christopher Kohler |
| Alma Mater: | Jesus College, Cambridge |
| Party: | Liberal Democrats |
Paul Christopher Kohler is a British Liberal Democrat politician, small business owner and legal academic serving as Member of Parliament for Wimbledon since 2024.[1] Prior to his election, he was a scholar of property law who served as head of SOAS University of London's School of Law.
Kohler graduated from Jesus College, Cambridge, in 1986 with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in law. During his time at university he was May Ball President, where fellow Jesus undergraduate Prince Edward served on his committee, and also elected JCR President.[2]
In the 1990s and 2000s, Kohler taught at University College London (UCL) and New College, Oxford. He was also Head of Best Practice at Nabarro Nathanson. Until 2019 before standing for Parliament, Kohler was a senior lecturer and former undergraduate tutor at SOAS University of London, where he served as head of the SOAS School of Law.[3] He is also a Visiting Fellow at Queen Mary University of London and owner of Covent Garden speakeasy CellarDoor, which he converted from a disused underground Gentlemen's public lavatory in 2006. He was previously a Fellow at the Russian State University of Justice but resigned in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Kohler first represented the Liberal Democrats in the 2018 local elections, achieving election as a councillor in the Trinity ward of Merton London Borough Council.[4] A year later, he was selected as the party's candidate for the constituency of Wimbledon at the 2019 United Kingdom general election. He was defeated by the incumbent Conservative MP, Stephen Hammond, but greatly increased the Lib Dems' vote share to a second-placed 19,745 (37.2%), reducing Hammond's majority to just 628 votes.[5] He was once again elected to the council in Merton at the 2022 local elections, this time as one of three Lib Dem councillors in the Wimbledon Town and Dundonald ward.[6] After once again securing the party's nomination for the Wimbledon parliamentary constituency at the 2024 United Kingdom general election, he gained the seat from the Conservatives (Hammond having not sought re-election[7]), with a vote share of 24,790 (45.1%) and a majority of 12,610 (22.9%).[8]
Kohler is married with four daughters. He sustained severe injuries after he was beaten by burglars during a raid at his home in 2014.[9] He suffered a fractured eye socket, broken nose and severe internal bleeding.[10]