Prosecutors in Taiwan's Hualien County have raided the Xiulin township office and seven other sites in a suspected vote-buying case, a blow to the two KMT-backed candidates at its center.

• Investigators searched eight locations, including the township office and the home of Xiulin township chief Wang Mei-kuei, and took her and her husband Hu Chih-min in for questioning.
• Wang is running for county councillor, and Hu is running to replace her as township chief; both are backed by the Kuomintang.
• Prosecutors suspect the township office funnelled local payback money to a charity group, whose head then used the cash to throw banquets for voters.
• Some candidates are also suspected of handing out gifts and paying voters a few thousand Taiwan dollars each for their votes.

Outlook: Prosecutors are still tracing the money and have not yet pinned down the full amounts or charges, so more questioning and possible indictments are likely before the local elections.