John Paul Hammerschmidt (b. May 4, 1922) is a politician from the state of Arkansas.

Hammerschmidt was born in Harrison, Arkansas. He served in the United States Army Air Corps during World War II. Hammerschmidt won a seat in the House of Representatives as a Republican representing the 3rd district in 1966, defeating incumbent Congressman James William Trimble by over 9,000 votes. The 3rd had been trending Republican for some time. He became the first Republican to represent Arkansas in Washington since Reconstruction.

Hammerschmidt's closest re-election campaign came against a University of Arkansas law professor and future President named Bill Clinton in 1974. Hammerschmidt defeated Clinton by over 6,000 votes. Hammerschmidt usually didn't have much trouble winning re-election. The only opponents to receive more than 1/3rd of the vote against Hammerschmidt were Clinton and James McDougal . Hammerschmidt had a conservative voting record on foreign policy and social issues, but a slightly less conservative record on economic votes. Hammerschmidt retired after serving 13 terms in 1993.