Taiwan's opposition KMT is fighting a damaging accusation that one of its overseas events flew China's flag and played Beijing's national anthem — a serious charge in an election season, and one the party says is fabricated.

• The KMT says the Los Angeles banquet was not run by its Southwest US chapter and no party officials attended.
• It points to a group tied to Flying Tigers research as the likely organizer, with no link to its US operations.
• The party accuses the Liberty Times of running unverified online clips as fact and demands a correction and public apology.
• The row lands as Taipei's mayoral race heats up, with the DAP's Puma Shen drawing large crowds and trading jabs with mayor Chiang Wan-an.
• Separately, prosecutors raided KMT legislator Chen Hsueh-sheng's parliamentary office in a corruption probe, hauling away aides and four boxes of evidence.

Outlook: Expect the media fight to escalate rather than settle, with the corruption raid giving rivals more ammunition ahead of the local elections.