A Taipei court has convicted a Taiwanese hometown-association official of taking Chinese government money to sway the 2024 presidential election — a win for Taiwan's anti-infiltration law and a warning to similar groups.

• Li An-tai, secretary-general of a Taiwan-Anhui hometown association, got four and a half years in prison and lost his civil rights for three years.
• He organized a 2023 trip that took 24 people — including local borough chiefs and their families — to Anhui, where Chinese officials covered almost all costs.
• Participants paid only their flights and one night's hotel; China's Anhui Taiwan Affairs Office picked up the rest, roughly double that amount.
• Over meals, Chinese United Front officials pushed "both sides are one family" and anti-independence lines, and Li told the group to back KMT candidate Hou Yu-ih so Taiwan could "change government."
• His co-defendant, Taipei Anhui association head Sung Kuo-chien, was acquitted. Both rulings can be appealed.

Outlook: Expect appeals and more prosecutions as Taiwan tightens scrutiny of China-funded travel ahead of future elections.