Looking at this from 20000 feet...
You are creating a TV show whose hero is a crime-fighting fake mentalist who
believes all spiritualism/religion is humbug - you're GOT TO to make his
protagonist a believer/religionist/spiritualist/otherworldly-power-summoner.
And Mr. Heller did. The dinner conversation in the 1st episode between
Jane & Van Pelt wonderfully showcased the humbug vs believer tension and
set down the anticipated premise of the show.As a TV show creator you MIGHT put "false" clues in your show (like the stretch in an early season where seemingly every other show
had a mugshot of someone who was 5' 11'). You MIGHT even spread "false" rumors
about your show (like the list of 7 Red John Suspects).But you DON'T make Jane's protagonist some obscure sheriff from Napa-Sonoma-Wherever who has no particular spiritual angle/connection.

Now that we're orirented we can start looking at clues.

The REAL short list of susects is:

 Grace Van Pelt
  - has cousin who is real psychic,
  - feels kingdom of God is a very real place
  - based on dealings with Stiles, seems attracted
    to spiriual like moth to flame
 Theresa Lisbon
  - always wears cricifix
  - meetings with Jane in church
Brett Stilles 
  - Visualize conectionLongshot candidates:
 Kristina Frye  
  - spiritualist/mentalist
Ray Haffner
  - Visualize conection

To me, Van Pelt is the most compelling, so I won't be saying a lot about the others. Van Pelt's position at CBI lets her keep tabs on Jane, gives her access to useful
information, and allows her to manipulate siuations.

How hard is it to access Patrick Jane's private thoughts - the ones he's never told anybody? Its EASY if your cousin is a REAL psychic

Wait you say, Red John is a man right? "John" is a mans name, and a woman
wouldn't have a mans name, right?  Well people who might have known Red John describe
a man with female-ish atributes.

In any case, who's to say how manly Van Pelt is? Her former fiancee? He's dead.
Wayne Rigsby? In the latest episode he bluts out that they haven't yet had sex. When
he adds "as a married couple" is he clarifiing a mis-speak, or obfuscating a truth that escaped unedited. Not sure.

Did someone try to warn us of a female Red John in a previous episode when they tried
to write "sHE IS MAn"as thier dying act. Only to have it get smudged?

After the last episodes trench coat scene I'm looking forward to Cho and Rigsby's weekly talk about whether Rigsby and Van Pelt are "doing it". Should be an enlightening moment
of truth for these speculations. It might just put 'em to rest. Or confirm them.

Don't need em though. How do we know for SURE that the person Rosalind Harker knew
was Red John and not an associate.

Need more clues? Check out the obligatoty word/letter cipher clue:
   Red John = Cvc Cvcc = Van Pelt
The vowels and consonants match! (sorry I had to do that, but "It's the Law")

Oh yeah and she has red hair.

I rest my case.

Okay you guys do realize red john has been killing since 1988 so it can't be her now if she's involved thats another story 

I have waited five years for this Reveal :)

http://postimg.org/image/zad76780z/

Click plausible to make it popular and let others enjoy :)

The list of seven suspects is a fake. It's essentially a hit list for Red john. 7 people that are disposable for Red John, that have served their purpose or need to be removed.

Patrick Jayne knows this, he's pretending to have fallen for Red John's plan and he gave Lisbon the list knowing she would leak the information to her team

Kristina Frye went missing with Van Pelt supposedly providing protection.

Patrick Jayne is fully aware who Red John is.

Grace Van Pelt was introduced in the first episode. She's shaken his hand.

Red john has always been a member of the team- the finale episode will be shocking as it shows an enormous betrayal. red John would want to play at the centre of the action and where better than within the team itself.

Grace will be leaving the series, because she is Red John.

The list of seven is a red herring. red john has never been a man. Red Johns followers have played the roles assigned to them to cover her identity.

The major clue at the end of the episode where Brett Partridge gets killed:
 not the pigeons
 not 666
 not tiger tiger
 not none of those.

It's that the Lisbon in this scene is LEFT-HANDED.


 

Red John is Van Pelt because she has Red Hair and likes to have sex all the time.

She new to the team at beginning of series.  RJ seems to always have insider info.
Had a relationship with RJ mole.  She has shown the ability to kill in without remorse.
Everyone refers to RJ as a male only because of the name John not because he/she is a male.