Ypsilanti's November 2026 ballot will include five candidates running for the Ypsilanti District Library Board of Trustees.
The board consists of seven seats, five of which will ending their term in December 2026. Each of the five candidates is running unopposed for one of those seats. Barring a surprise write-in, those five candidates are expected to fill the seats. Four of the candidates are running for the regular four-year term, while one is running for a two-year term after a former board member vacated their seat early.
Christopher Slat
Christopher Slat, a resident of Ypsilanti Township for the past four years, is a new candidate running for the two-year term.
Before moving to Ypsilanti, Slat lived in Monroe, where he served on the board of Monroe Public Access Television, now called Monroe Community Media. Slat also ran for state representative in 2020.
Slat’s interest in being on the library board comes from working in education and libraries being important in his own life, he said. “I think schools and libraires are some of the strongest remaining public services that are real agents of equity in society.”
Slat told The Echo that he is not coming into this position with any agenda; he is just trying to serve the board and apply some lessons he learned on the Board of Public Access.
Paul Leighton
Paul Leighton is one of the incumbents running for re-election; he was appointed to the board in April after a trustee vacated their seat early.
Leighton is a professor in the Department of Sociology, Anthology and Criminology at Eastern Michigan University as well as the head of the advisory board for Swoop’s Pantry.
Leighton’s passion for the library comes from growing up with a mother who worked in education, he said. After getting into criminology, he said he realized that literacy was a way to cut down on crime.
“People who can read can do a better job navigating job applications and work. And if you can express yourself, you are less likely to be violent,” he explained.
He said the library board should prioritize getting a new bookmobile. He also listed smaller projects to work on, such as setting up a memory station, a place to scan in photographs and put albums together.
His main focus is on supporting the library and helping where he can, he said.
“I’ve always appreciated that the library was a place where folks could get things for free,” Leighton said.
Kerri Pepperman
Another new name on the ballot is Kerri Peppperman, a resident of Ypsilanti for 26 years.
Pepperman has volunteered for campaigns in the past, but this is her first time having her own name on the ballot. She has a background in web development with a master's degree in information science from the University of Michigan.
Pepperman’s interest in the library board comes from years of patronizing the library and having friends who have served on the board. After reaching out to learn how she could get more involved, Pepperman ended up on the fundraising committee for the Superior branch of the library.
“That was a lot of fun and just deepened my connections to the library, the staff and the director," Pepperman said.
Patricia J. Horne McGee
Patricia J. Horne McGee is an incumbent candidate for the YDL board and currently serves as a trustee.
According to a 2021 oral history project with the Ann Arbor District Library, Horne McGee has masters degrees from the University of Michigan and University of California, Los Angeles. She then taught social work and child development at Ferris State University and Mercy College. She also previously worked in the Wayne County Intermediate School District and served as the director for Washtenaw County's Head Start program.
Kristy Cooper
Kristy Cooper is the third incumbent candidate for the YDL board and currently serves as the president of the board.
According to her LinkedIn, Cooper received a Bachelors of Arts in English Language and Literature/Letter from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a Masters in Library and Information Science from the University of Michigan, and a Masters of Business Administration in Non-Profit/Public/Organizational Business Management from Eastern Michigan University.
She has worked in libraries for years, and published a memoir titled, "I Was a Stripper Librarian: From Cardigans to G-Strings," according to reporting from MLive in 2021.
The Eastern Echo reached out to Patricia J. Horne McGee and Kristy Cooper, but received no response. If candidates respond, The Eastern Echo will publish their positions.
