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| 1988, May 29 |
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| Zia dissolved the National Assembly, the four provincial assemblies, and the cabinet, citing a “complete breakdown” in morality and law and order. Elections were announced for November. | 1 |
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| Aug. 17 |
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| Pres. Zia was killed in a plane crash at Bahawalpur in eastern Pakistan amid widespread rumors of sabotage. A new state of emergency was declared. The acting president announced that elections would still proceed as planned. | 2 |
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| Nov. 16 |
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| A general election for the new National Assembly netted 93 of the 207 directly elected seats for the PPP; the PPP was the only party to secure seats in each of the four provinces. Benazir Bhutto declared results to be a “mandate” for the PPP government. | 3 |
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| Dec |
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| Although Bhutto's chief rival, Mian Nawaz Sharif, was elected as Punjab's chief minister, she was appointed prime minister, becoming the first female leader of a Muslim country. The state of emergency was repealed. Ghulam Ishaq Khan was elected president. | 4 |
| A crisis in Balochistan was provoked by the dissolution of the provincial assembly by the state's governor. Opposition demands for restoration of the assembly were supported when the Balochistan High Court ruled that the dissolution was unconstitutional. | 5 |
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