Xi Hosts China’s Smallest Lawmaker Meeting of Century Amid Purge

The number of delegates attending China’s National People’s Congress fell to the lowest level of this century, highlighting the churn inside the country’s top legislature as President Xi Jinping’s purge of officials expands.

There were 2,765 delegates present for the opening ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Thursday, according to Zhao Leji, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee. That’s the lowest attendance count since at least 2000.