In the 90s even political scientists (including the ones I spoke to) had never heard of the idea of laws being decided by jury, rather than by politicians or in referendums. Same for the the idea of choosing public officials by jury (election by jury), rather than being chosen by politicians or popular election.
Despite the fact it is clearly the best option of the three, in a wide range of cases ;o). The most democratic, the most in accord with rule by the people and political equality, the best for informed decisions by the people on a fair and level playing field, the best for good governance, and the best for preventing corruption.
Including being the best option for choosing all the independent and supposed-to-be independent public officials (the judiciary, regulatory commissions, inspector generals, prosecutors, public defenders, heads of independent agencies ...), and for choosing politicians, both in primaries and in general elections.
I think it might be hard to convince most people that general elections for the most important political offices ought to be replaced with election by jury, such as elections for the president, governors, mayors, and members of legislative assemblies. Easier I think to convince people that election by jury ought to replace the primaries.
I think the best and most democratic popular election primaries in the USA currently, are maybe the "top few primaries," in which all candidates from all parties, and also independents, run in the same popular election primary with the top four, or top two, proceeding to the general election. I think it would be good for democracy and good governance, for all of the existing primaries to be replaced with "top few" jury primaries, using a proportional representation voting method, of a kind that ensures the Condorcet winner (the winner in one-to-one match ups with the other candidates) is included in the winners. Whether "the few" who proceed to the general election will be two, three for four candidates, should I think be decided by jury, as I think should all laws about how public officials are chosen.
I think that the deciding of election laws by jury is an important and essential part of having democratic elections. I think the deciding of election laws by politicians is contrary to democracy and good governance, and taints such laws with oligarchy and a lack of democracy, and with the self-interest and perceived-self-interest of the politicians who decide
such laws. I see no valid reason for excluding the public from deciding the election laws, if the public do so in an informed and democratic manner, as we can, through juries.
As for judges ruling on the constitutionality of election laws, this in my view is only reasonable if those judges are democratically chosen by jury. And not if those judges are for example chosen by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
Also, I think split decisions of the top appellate courts, including the US Supreme Court, on election laws (and on all other laws, but here my focus is on election laws), ought to be referred to a trial by jury, on a fair and level playing field, to decide which of the different legal opinions of the court prevails and becomes the law of the land.
If the justices on the Supreme Court disagree, let the informed judgement of the people, through a jury, decide which of the different opinions on the court will prevail and become the law of the land.
If the law is so uncertain that the Supreme Court justices disagree on what the law is, let the matter be decided democratically, by the informed judgement of the people, through a jury, after a fair trial on a level playing field. Such juries would, in my proposal, be limited to choosing between the different opinions of the court on what the law is (they would not formulate and write a decision of their own), and would be large enough to be a statistically accurate cross-sections of the public.
If all of the opinions on the court overturn existing law, then maybe the jury should have the option to reject all of the opinions on the court, and keep the existing law. In order for the status quo (the existing law) to get a fair trial, one or more capable advocates for the status quo would need to be able make the case for the status quo to the jury, on a level playing field. I think it especially desirable for the jury to have this option, if the Supreme Court continues to be chosen in an undemocratic manner. Being chosen by the president and confirmed by the Senate is in my view undemocratic, and is also corrupt in that the politicians who choose the justices, and the billionaires, lobbies and super PACs that may influence their choice, all have a strong interest in having judges that will make the decisions they want. And what they want is likely to be often at odds with what the public want, and with the public good.