In May 1912, the Tongmenghui moved its headquarters to Beijing. At that time, the Tongmenghui was the largest party in China, with branches in Guangdong, Szechuan, Wuhan, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Anqing, Fuzhou and Tianjin. It had a membership of about 550,000.[1][page needed] In August 1912, the Tongmenghui formed the nucleus of the Kuomintang, the governing political party of the republic.[citation needed]