***UPDATE ON NOV. 8***

It's been quite a week, everybody. We knew based on this coronavirus pandemic and the record number of absentee ballots (I voted using one, as did the President's family) that the election was NOT going to be decided on Nov. 3. 

The purpose of this petition was to encourage the news media to not rush to projections until the mail-in ballots were counted. I was pleasantly surprised at the level of restraint used by the news media over the past week, although I don't think it went far enough.

I do believe that news networks shouldn't have reported projections or numbers coming in until states could be called. The changing numbers are NOT surprising, given the politicization of in-person vs. mail-in voting, and the way and timeframe various states (including Republican states) counted them. 

The media should have planned to alter the way they reported Election Day results, adjusting to prevent the appearance of the election "changing." It didn't change, but now we're seeing the results of people thinking the election is being stolen (an irresponsible claim for which there's NO EVIDENCE). 

The media IS partly to blame for the post-election disputes, but not because they called it for Biden. It's because they put us all through an unnecessary roller coaster.

I'm closing this petition down as we approach 50,000 votes, because I worry the plot is being lost now as the President's supporters are signing it to further their cause of "STOP THE STEAL," which is not something I agree with, nor in the spirit of the original petition. 

Focusing on media responsibility during the trickling of results is what this was all about, not fighting the sensible conclusion of this election. 

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ORIGINAL PETITION: 

The 2020 Presidential election is unlike any other in our lifetimes, both because of the pandemic, and the tense polarization of the country. 

Around 100 million people voted early in this election, many by mail, and this shift will cause many votes to be counted AFTER Election Night. 

By reporting real-time results starting on Election Night, Nov. 3, viewers will be given an incomplete picture of the electoral reality, which could lead to civil unrest and more chaos.

Voters will go to bed thinking one candidate won, and days later could potentially get a different result. 

Education is key here, and that's the role of the news media -- to inform (over and over if needed) to ensure people know that Election Night isn't going to produce a clear cut winner this year. There are plenty of articles and analyses that support this.

Trump campaign officials have already talked about how the Democrats will try to "steal the election" by "adding more votes" after Election Night. It's not adding more votes. It's counting ALL votes.

The truth is, the votes on Election Night will sway Republican, while the mail-in votes being counted throughout the week will sway Democrat. The campaigns know this. 

The election isn't over until every legitimate vote is counted -- and there are a lot of reasons why a limited number of humans can't count every vote on Nov. 3. 

The news networks need to hold off on reporting specific election numbers on Election Night, waiting instead until we have a fuller picture, so this can be a peaceful democratic process. We don't want officials on either side putting serious doubt in the eyes of the nation when it comes to our elections. 

News media need to recognize the responsibility they have to the viewers, rather than raking in monetary gain on Election Night for sensationalism that could ultimately lead to serious strife in this country moving forward.

Let's make sure people know that we're interested in democracy, not political theater.