The campaign was heavily centred on a controversial deal that Tabai had negotiated with the Soviet Union in 1985, which granted the USSR fishing rights in the waters around Kiribati.

Tabai entered talks with the Soviet Union in March 1985, negotiating access to the waters around Kiribati for tuna fishing.

[2] Tabai's opponents expressed concerns that his actions would drive away neighbouring allies, cut off access to foreign aid, invite sanctions, or risk eroding democracy in favour of communism.

[3] The Bishop of Tarawa made the Soviet fishing issue a religious one by siding against the government, and Catholics criticised the agreement for the involvement of a nation that opposed Christianity.

Tabai's government campaigned to garner support for the agreement, but they found themselves unwelcome to the people of the predominantly Catholic northern islands.

Tito was a Catholic and a newly elected member of parliament from the Teinainano Urban Council constituency in South Tarawa.

He had previously worked as an education officer organising soccer tournaments and had recently attended the University of the South Pacific.

[11] National politics were a greater factor in 1987 than they were in previous elections, as the Soviet fishing agreement and other polarising debates between the government and the opposition shifted the focus of the public.

[5] It was legally ambiguous whether the 1978 election counted towards his term limit, as the chief minister inherited the presidency upon the nation's independence in 1979.

[16] As Tong had begun proceedings before he was re-elected in the parliamentary election, the High Court of Kiribati ruled that the filing was premature and dismissed the case.

[14] Though Tabai's new government lacked a majority after the election, occasional support from independent members of parliament allowed him to maintain control over the legislature.