[1] All 52 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election.

The government led by William Morgan was defeated by John Cox Bray only two months after the 1881 election.

Since the inaugural 1857 election, no parties or solid groupings had been formed, which resulted in frequent changes of the Premier.

If for any reason the incumbent Premier of South Australia lost sufficient support through a successful motion of no confidence at any time on the floor of the house, he would tender his resignation to the Governor of South Australia, which would result in another member deemed to have the support of the House of Assembly being sworn in by the Governor as the next Premier.

Informal groupings began and increased government stability occurred from the 1887 election.