With all of this election hoopla going around, all of the claims by candidates, debates, and invective, it’s difficult sometimes to figure out what candidates really represent.

Or, it was. All you have to do (assuming they already hold a political office) is check out Project Vote Smart.

Just punch in the name of the representative of interest, and you get a categorized list of their voting record, ratings according to various interest groups, campaign finance information, and more. Mysteriously-named bills are explained with summaries.

To get you started, here are some links directly to voting records and interest group ratings:

• John McCain: Voting Record – Interest Group Ratings
• Hillary Clinton: Voting Record Interest Group Ratings
• Barack Obama: Voting Record – Interest Group Ratings