Social Action had already suffered from a spate of defections before the March election, with a reduction in size from 54 seats in 1988 to 31 in March 1992. In the lead up to the September elections, only a small number of its MPs left, the most significant being from its power base in the Northeast. But the party was already down to its rump, and replacements from other parties brought the number of ex-MPs that it was fielding in September back to the figure of 31