Taiwan court sentences Hsu Chun-ying to 7 years for election interference

A court in New Taipei City has sentenced Hsu Chun-ying, a mainland-born spouse living in Taiwan, to seven years in prison for conspiring with Chinese officials to influence Taiwanese elections.

Hsu was found guilty of violating the Anti-Infiltration Act by acting under the direction of Chinese government officials to support specific political candidates. The court ruled that she campaigned for Taipei mayoral candidate Huang Shan-shan in 2022 and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je in 2024 to align with Chinese Communist Party interests. The prosecution presented evidence that Hsu coordinated with officials from China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs to expand the political influence of the mainland spouse community in Taiwan.

In addition to political interference, Hsu was convicted of several financial crimes. These include operating an illegal currency exchange involving over 24.5 million New Taiwan Dollars and participating in a scheme to defraud a bank of 26.97 million New Taiwan Dollars through falsified employment and insurance records. The court noted that her actions undermined Taiwan’s constitutional order and the fairness of its electoral system.