Taiwan prosecutors urge voters to report vote-buying ahead of November local elections

Sep 07, 2026

Taiwan is ramping up its anti-bribery push before the November 28 local elections, with prosecutors dangling large rewards to turn vote-sellers into informants.

  • Prosecutors in Miaoli County brought together investigators, police, anti-corruption officials, and immigration agents for a joint anti-vote-buying pledge.
  • Acting prosecutor-general Hsu Hsi-hsiang made the pitch bluntly: take a candidate's NT$1,000 bribe and live in fear, or report it and collect at least NT$500,000.
  • Rewards for reporting election crimes run from NT$500,000 up to NT$20 million, and informants' identities are kept secret.
  • The listed offences go beyond cash handouts — banquets, threats of violence, betting-pool manipulation, ghost voters, and newer tactics like online disinformation and foreign interference.
  • The November vote fills local posts from village chiefs up to county mayors and city councillors, seats that shape day-to-day local government.

Outlook: Expect stepped-up raids and fast-tracked prosecutions across Taiwan as campaigning intensifies over the next two months.

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