Wimbledon.
Liberal Democrats MP Paul Kohler holds the seat on 45.1% of the vote — a split-council geography across 2 councils.
3 Jun 2026
Kohler's most notable parliamentary action came on 20 June 2025, when he broke with the Liberal Democrat majority five times during Report Stage of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. His deviations clustered around two issues: safeguard provisions if an independent doctor cannot complete an assessment, and whether voluntary stopping of eating and drinking should qualify someone as terminally ill. On the latter question he split from his party on both sides of related amendments -- a pattern suggesting he was navigating his own position rather than following a bloc. His stance data confirms the divergence: he sits 28 percentage points above his party average on end-of-life autonomy and 26 points above on assisted dying safeguards.
His broader voting record is that of a reliable but not unconditional Lib Dem -- 96% party alignment across 63% of available votes, a participation rate that sits below the Commons average. He consistently backs parliamentary and Lords scrutiny (100% and 97% respectively), opposes the employer National Insurance increase, and supports climate action. His speeches span economy and jobs, transport, crime, and local government -- matching his two committee seats on Home Affairs and Northern Ireland Affairs. He deviates notably from his party on welfare reform, voting more favourably than most Lib Dems, and less favourably on NHS funding and civil liberties.
Locally, Kohler has been visible on the long-running Wimbledon Park tennis expansion dispute, attending the judicial review and pushing council motions, and has written publicly about rail improvements on the District Line and South Western Railway. Recent news coverage -- 40 articles over 90 days -- concentrates on crime, local government, and culture, though sentiment scores are neutral throughout. His maiden speech flagged the threat to Wimbledon police station, and policing has remained a recurring theme. Pre-2024 election data is limited, so the full voting picture covers roughly two parliamentary years.
Ward-level direction-of-travel: who controls what, who flipped recently, who holds the line. Each ward links to the council that runs it.
| Ward | Latest winner | Votes | Council | Last cycle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abbey(3 seats) | Smith · Braithwaite · Dresselaers | 4,416 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| Green Lane St James(2 seats) | Giles · Tracey | 2,044 | Kingston upon Thames LD | May 2026 |
| Hillside(2 seats) | Holden · Golby | 2,455 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| Merton Park(2 seats) | Foley · Mercer | 3,714 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| Motspur Park Old Malden East(2 seats) | Morrissey · Wimalathasan | 2,187 | Kingston upon Thames LD | May 2026 |
| New Malden Village(3 seats) | Kim · Heap · Durrant | 4,171 | Kingston upon Thames LD | May 2026 |
| Old Malden(2 seats) | Park · Massimi | 2,539 | Kingston upon Thames LD | May 2026 |
| Raynes Park(3 seats) | Flack · Willis · Wilson | 6,252 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| Village(3 seats) | Comer · Austin · Orson | 6,081 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| Wandle(2 seats) | Stringer · Budner | 2,231 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| West Barnes(3 seats) | Bokhari · Hakim · Page | 4,916 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| Wimbledon Park(3 seats) | Hall · Thomas · Reiss | 5,708 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
| Wimbledon Town Dundonald(3 seats) | Fairclough · MacArthur · McGrath | 7,569 | Merton Lab | May 2026 |
Source · Democracy Club · DCLEAPIL v1.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The seat’s population is concentrated in Merton (91,432), with Kingston upon Thames (18,970) as the second pole. Total population across named built-up areas: 110,402.
Source · ONS Built-Up Areas · Census 2021
| Settlement | Pop. | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Merton | 91,432 | city |
| Kingston upon Thames | 18,970 | city |
Headline indicators.
| Indicator | Local | National | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment rate | 65.6% | 57.1% | +15% |
| Owner-occupied | 62.5% | 63.1% | -1% |
| Private rented | 29.2% | 20.0% | +46% |
| Social rented | 8.2% | 16.8% | -51% |
Ethnicity.
Source · Census 2021
Population by age & sexCensus 2021 · 18 bands · click to expand
Source · Census 2021 (ONS) · % of usual residents; tick marks the median seat per band
Income tax contribution.
| Total income tax | £1680m |
| Taxpayers | 68,000 |
| Median per taxpayer | £5,520 |
| Mean per taxpayer | £24,700 |
Source · HMRC SPI · ±8% confidence
Where the money flows back in.
This constituency is served by Merton and Kingston upon Thames. Each council’s service spend, peer rank and supplier list lives on its own page — open from the meta block above or the compass strip below.
Move the income slider on My place to see income tax, NI, VAT and council tax against your earnings — the household lens.
Headline rate.
By category.
Source · data.police.uk · 3-month rate per 1,000 pop
2024 — full result.
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul KohlerWON | LD | 24,790 | 45.1 |
| Danielle Dunfield-Prayero | Con | 12,180 | 22.1 |
| Eleanor Stringer | Lab | 11,733 | 21.3 |
| Ben Cronin | Ref | 3,221 | 5.9 |
| Rachel Brooks | Grn | 2,442 | 4.4 |
| Aaron Mafi | Ind | 341 | 0.6 |
| Sarah Barber | Ind | 129 | 0.2 |
| Amy Lynch | Ind | 80 | 0.1 |
| Michael Watson | Ind | 69 | 0.1 |
Turnout 54,985
Prior contests.
| Year | Winner | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Stephen Hammond | Con | 38.4 |
| 2017 | Stephen Hammond | Con | 46.5 |
| 2015 | Stephen Hammond | Con | 52.1 |
| 2010 | Hammond, Stephen | Con | 49.1 |
Sources, methods & last update
2023 boundary review
DCLEAPIL v1.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Census 2021
National avg over 575 seats
±8% confidence
LSOA-aggregated · rolling 12mo