More than 500 municipal lawmakers in Hunan province in China have stood down following an electoral fraud scandal.
Xinhua news agency said the 512 officials resigned after accepting bribes from 56 members of the Hunan People's Congress to elect them to their posts. The provincial assembly members were also dismissed.
The BBC reports municipal officials have the power to appoint representatives to the provincial assembly, which has 763 members.
CCTV state television reported they were dismissed for being "elected by bribery".
Xinhua reported an investigation revealed that 110 million yuan ($US18.1 million) was offered in bribes to lawmakers and staff in the city of Hengyang.
