SEVEN candidates will be standing for the four positions up for election on the York City Supporters' Trust board.

Club director Sophie McGill, Paul Rawnsley, Ian Hey and Peter Rookes are all hoping to be re-elected to the board but the Trust's Election Working Group have also received nominations for Michael Grant, Frank Ormston and Steve Ovenden.

The deadline for election nominations passed last night and an election pack will soon be distributed to the 1,955 supporters, who were Trust members as of September 30, 2003.

An independent organisation - Electoral Reform Services - are preparing the pack, which will contain each candidate's election statement and the voting form for members to complete and return.

The packs are expected to be posted in two weeks' time and the results announced at the Trust's annual general meeting, which will be held at the Grand Opera House in York on Wednesday, December 17.

A Trust Annual Review entitled: "York City...at the Heart of the Community" will also be distributed with the packs.

Trust secretary Stan Collins said: "Nominations have now closed and we now move towards the voting phase. We're hoping for a good turnout of voters to put in place four people to join the Trust board."

The first Trust election in June 2002 saw 900 members vote, which represented 65 per cent of the membership at the time.

Rookes, who is currently filling a casual vacancy on the board, was required to stand for re-election by the Trust's rules and Hey, a co-opted member, has chosen to stand.

Both were brought on board towards the end of 2002 and the beginning of this year to help with the Trust's rescue package.

McGill and Rawnsley were the two Trust board members with the most votes at the first election but were chosen at random from the remaining nine elected members, as the Trust rules also state that a third of the board's positions must be up for re-election each year.

Seven of the Trust board's existing members are immune from re-election until next year at least.

But if McGill is not re-elected to the Trust board, the Trust would need to consider changes to the make-up of the club board, as under the Code of Conduct between the two bodies the club board must have at least as many directors who are also Trust Board members as the other directors who have no association.

Annual Trust membership continues to be available and costs just £10.

Updated: 10:11 Saturday, November 01, 2003