Herbert Hiken Kohl (February 7, 1935 – December 27, 2023) was an American businessman, philanthropist, and Democratic politician from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He served 24 years as a U.S. senator from Wisconsin, from 1989 to 2013, and earlier served as chairman of the Wisconsin Democratic Party.

From 1970 to 1979, Kohl was president of Kohl's Corporation, his family's business that owned the Kohl's department stores chain. He purchased the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association in 1985 to prevent the team from relocating out of Milwaukee. He is also the namesake of the Kohl Center arena on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus.

Herbert Hiken Kohl was born on February 7, 1935, and raised in Milwaukee, the son of Mary (née Hiken) and Max Kohl. His father was a Polish Jewish immigrant and his mother was a Russian Jewish immigrant who came to the United States in the 1920s. Kohl attended Washington High School. He earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1956 and a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School in 1958. While an undergraduate, he joined the Pi Lambda Phi fraternity. He was also a roommate of Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. Between 1958 and 1964, Kohl was a member of the United States Army Reserve.

After finishing graduate school, Kohl worked as an investor in real estate and the stock market, eventually spinning off his own company, Kohl Investments, to manage these assets. He and his brother became heirs to a family-owned chain that included 50 grocery stores and several department stores, pharmacies and liquor stores. In 1970, Kohl was named president of Kohl's and served until the corporation was sold to BATUS Inc. (formerly British American Tobacco) in 1978.

After becoming prominent in Wisconsin business circles, Kohl also became involved in state politics as a donor and fundraiser for Patrick Lucey, who was elected Governor of Wisconsin in 1970 and reelected in 1974. After the 1974 election, Kohl first emerged in the state political arena as master of ceremonies at Lucey's second inauguration. Shortly after that inauguration, the chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, Bill Gerrard—another Lucey ally—resigned. Lucey encouraged Kohl to seek the chairmanship, and Kohl agreed. He was named interim chairman at an April 12, 1975, emergency session, and was then elected by the party's state convention delegates later that summer.

Under Kohl's chairmanship, Democrats won historic victories in the 1976 election, reaching a supermajority in both chambers of the legislature for the first time since the creation of the Republican Party. Wisconsin also gave its electoral votes to the Democratic presidential candidate for the first time since 1964. And during the presidential nominating contest, Wisconsin's Democratic state primary had emerged as one of the pivotal contests in selecting a nominee. Shortly after the 1976 election, Kohl announced he felt that he had accomplished enough as chairman and was ready to step down. He ultimately remained in office until the June 1977 state party convention.

Kohl purchased the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from Jim Fitzgerald in 1985 for $18 million to ensure the team remained in Milwaukee. In 2003, he considered an offer to sell the team for $170 million to former NBA superstar Michael Jordan, but decided to retain ownership.

In 2013, Kohl began to bring in new partners who were committed to keeping the team in Milwaukee. Kohl agreed to sell the Bucks to New York–based billionaires Wes Edens and Marc Lasry for $550 million on April 16, 2014.