Taiwan's top court has confirmed prison terms for two men who took Chinese state-funded hospitality ahead of the 2024 elections, a warning sign for Beijing's influence operations on the island.

• A New Taipei village chief got 2.5 years and an association head 4 years 8 months under Taiwan's anti-infiltration law, with the verdict now final.
• The pair organized a 2023 trip for village chiefs and relatives, funded by Nanjing's Taiwan affairs office, where officials urged support for the KMT and against the DPP.
• Travelers paid about half the going market rate, and that gap was the key reason judges ruled it an improper benefit meant to buy votes.
• A lower court had acquitted both, saying there was no proof of a price gap or direct voting instructions; the appeals court reversed it.
• The trip happened two months before the presidential vote, and one defendant told the group the meal was "on Xi Jinping."

Outlook: The ruling sets a clear standard that heavily discounted China-funded travel near an election counts as vote-buying, likely chilling similar trips before Taiwan's next election cycle.