FRANKLIN COUNTY, Ohio — Cooking often reminds Ajmeri Hoque of home.

What You Need To Know

• Ajmeri Hoque is an immigrant from Bangladesh and came to America as a child


• Hoque, who’s running unopposed for Franklin County Municipal Court Judge, is on track to become Ohio’s first Muslim judge


• Hoque has worked as a criminal defense attorney in Ohio for more than a decade

“My parents cooked Bangladeshi food,” she said, “and they kept that tradition alive. And so, every Eve, we make it at home, and it's actually one of my favorite dishes.”

Born in Bangladesh, she came to America as a child where she had to navigate being different.

“I'm used to being the first in many spaces," Hoque said. “When we moved to the country in New York City, we were one of many. However, we moved to Connecticut when I was a teenager, and we were the first Muslim family, first Brown family in that little, tiny city.”

Hoque remains a trailblazer even as an adult, breaking barriers as a Muslim judicial candidate.

 “I saw a vacancy that needed to be filled,” she said. “There's no one like me in the courthouse in Franklin County, and there should be, because Franklin County is very, very diverse.”

Hoque is running unopposed in May’s primary and, right now, doesn’t have an opponent in the general election either.

Ohio State Professor of Law Lee Strang said if she becomes a municipal court judge, it would be a significant milestone.

“It's a challenge or an opportunity,” he said, “that we've been dealing with as a country for over 200, almost 250 years now, which is we've had robust religious pluralism in the way that we respond to it as we open our judicial offices to everybody.”

For more than a decade in Ohio, Hoque has worked as a criminal defense attorney, but taking this next step could pave the way for others.

“When will Muslim-Americans achieve judicial office in greater numbers? Strang said. "It will be at a point when they play a large role in one of the major political coalitions.”

But as far as Hoque’s concerned, she has high hopes, making leaps and bounds every step of the way.