Prior to the elections, the military junta's restrictions on former politicians were lifted, allowing them to re-enter politics.

[1] Despite a reduction in its share of the vote, the Motherland Party retained its majority in parliament, gaining 81 seats.

[2] The elections saw the return of the religious oriented base of Necmettin Erbakan and the symbol names of the politics in the 1970s, Bülent Ecevit and Süleyman Demirel.

Süleyman Demirel founded the True Path Party to challenge the power of Turgut Özal on conservative liberal votes.

The elections were marked by harsh restrictions on televised publicity for the opposition parties.