each clan nominating candidates for the ten positions or so that are available on the Association's board each election cycle. Each vote is normally along the interests of the ichimon, which explain why the bigger clans more oftenly holds the Association's chairmanship. Former wrestler popularity however plays a role in the in the credit given to an application. For example, former yokozuna Takanohana won 4 straight election bids to become director before his demotion in 2018, despite being the leader of a small ichimon. Stables aren’t equally divided among the ichimon. As of October 2022, Nishonoseki has the most heya with 15 but Dewanoumi has the most affiliated oyakata (elders) with 35. As in the political world intrigue, subterfuge, splits and new coalitions are ordinary. The oyakata have a lot of leeway and can decide many things on their own. In fact, some elders change stables, move their stable to different ichimon or break off from their clan. For example, the Kokonoe stable was founded in 1967 after yokozuna Chiyonoyama failed to gain control of the Dewanoumi stable. The break off that ensued saw the stable leaving the Dewanoumi ichimon to join the Takasago ichimon. Also, in 2010, Takanohana stable (run under the "one in a generation kabu" system by the eponymous yokozuna) broke off from the Nishonoseki ichimon (with Ōnomatsu stable, Ōtake stable and Magaki stable) as he wanted to present himself to the board's election and his clan would not permit it. He became the leader of its own group, which was then formally recognized as an ichimon (called Takanohana ichimon) in 2014. The ichimon was however short lived and was disbanded in 2018 after the Takanoiwa affair. Until 2018, there have been non-aligned heya, or lose coalitions that weren’t formal ichimon, but in 2018 the JSA ruled that all stables had to belong to one of the current clans. To strengthen the bonds between each stables of a same ichimon, the various clans hold joint practices (called ) prior to tournaments. Board of the Association As of February 2023: Board of directors Directors (called riji) are elected by a single anonymous vote by all the elders assembled in a board of trustees (called hyōgiin-kai, 評議員会) from candidates selected among the toshiyori and external candidates. Prior to 2014, 4 active sumo wrestlers serving as representatives and both the tate-gyōji had the right to vote, but with the transition