All these parties emerged in late 1989, when the communist government permitted multiparty political life in Slovenia.
In the first democratic elections in April 1990, DEMOS won 54% of the votes and formed the first multiparty government of the country, headed by the Christian Democrat Lojze Peterle.
The coalition led the process of democratization of the country, the liberalization of public life, and the implementation of a market economy.
The most important achievement of the coalition, however, was the declaration of Slovenia's independence on 25 June 1991, followed by the Ten-Day War, in which the Slovenians rejected Yugoslav military interference.
Jože Pučnik became vice-president in Drnovšek's cabinet, guaranteeing some continuity in government policies.