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RealClearPolitics is a Chicago-based political news aggregator and blog founded in 2000 by former options trader John McIntyre and former advertising agency account executive Tom Bevan "for people like us...people who live and breathe politics and the major issues of the day." Every day the site aggregates a wide range of columns and news stories from across the Internet.

The 2008 U.S. presidential election has boosted traffic for the site, "From a trickle of early traffic, the site now draws about 3m visitors each month.

Founding
The website was founded in 2000 by McIntyre, a former trader at the Chicago Board Options Exchange, and Bevan, a former advertising agency account executive. McIntyre explained "[i]t really wasn't any more complicated than there should be a place online that pulled together all this quality information." They call what they do, "intelligent aggregation."

Original content
In addition to linking to content around the Internet, Real Clear Politics also provides its own commentary.

Bevan and Blake Dvorak write "The Real Clear Politics Blog," which is hosted by TIME. Associate Editor Reid Wilson writes the "PoliticsNation" blog, and doctoral student Jay Cost writes the "HorseRaceBlog".

Averages as a political handicapping tool
RealClearPolitics also compiles averages of major political polls on various elections throughout the United States to give a broader view of the race. Some have questioned whether the polling averages provided on RealClearPolitics and other sites are useful political handicapping tools.

Other sites
RealClearPolitics also owns RealClearMarkets and RealClearSports.