John Paul Hammerschmidt (May 4, 1922 – April 1, 2015) was an American politician from the state of Arkansas. A Republican, Hammerschmidt served for 13 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from the Northwestern Arkansas district before he retired in 1993.In 1974, a nationally Democratic year, he secured his fifth term by defeating the then 28-year-old future President Bill Clinton. He was also the first Republican elected to the House of Representatives from Arkansas since Reconstruction.