[amanaplanacanal]

Is that really a recent thing though? Or has it always taken some places weeks to count votes, just not in close states?

[HWR_14]

It's recent because of the huge amount of write in ballots. Usually the winner is called the night of because they* just ignore the mail in numbers, even in battleground states. This year, there were too many (and they were too different a population from the in person ballots) to do that.

* "They" meaning the news media. The official vote took longer and counted the mail in ballots

[amanaplanacanal]

Ah yes, COVID. And then some states passed laws that the mail in ballots couldn't start being counted until after election day.