The election used the 10 wards created by the Initial Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements in 1981. Each ward elected one councillor using first-past-the-post voting.[1]
Labour maintained a large majority on the district council after winning eight of the 10 seats although four wards were uncontested after only Labour stood a candidate. Labour's vote share fell by 8.9% as they lost two seats from previous election in 1984. The newly formed Social Democratic Party (SDP) won a seat in Cumnock and Doon Valley for the first time – their only seat in Scotland at the 1988 elections – and the remaining seat was won by Independent Labour.