| Country: | Gibraltar |
| Type: | legislative |
| Previous Election: | 1984 Gibraltar general election |
| Previous Year: | 1984 |
| Next Election: | 1992 Gibraltar general election |
| Next Year: | 1992 |
| Seats For Election: | 15 seats in the House of Assembly |
| Majority Seats: | 8 |
| Election Date: | 24 March 1988 |
| Image1: | Joebossano.jpg |
| Leader1: | Joe Bossano |
| Party1: | Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party |
| Seats1: | 8 |
| Popular Vote1: | 60,626 |
| Percentage1: | 58.22% |
| Leader2: | Adolfo Canepa |
| Party2: | Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights |
| Seats2: | 7 |
| Popular Vote2: | 30,562 |
| Percentage2: | 29.35% |
| Chief Minister | |
| Before Election: | Adolfo Canepa |
| After Election: | Joe Bossano |
| Before Party: | Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights |
| After Party: | Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party |
General elections were held in Gibraltar on 24 March 1988. The elections were a watershed in Gibraltar politics, as they saw the first win by the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party (GSLP), led by Joe Bossano, whose candidates took 58% of the popular vote and eight of the fifteen seats available in the Gibraltar House of Assembly. Bossano's party took control away from the Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights (AACR), under outgoing Chief Minister Adolfo Canepa. The AACR had been the dominant political party in Gibraltar politics for over forty years and had won every election but one since 1945. After this, it was never to win another general election, while Bossano was to remain in office continuously for eight years, from 25 March 1988 to 17 May 1996.
The first fifteen candidates were elected to the House of Assembly.
| Candidate | Party | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Joe Bossano | Socialist Labour Party | 8,128 |
| Joseph Ernest Pilcher | Socialist Labour Party | 7,673 |
| Joseph Louis Baldachino | Socialist Labour Party | 7,568 |
| Joseph Louis Moss | Socialist Labour Party | 7,510 |
| Maria Isabel Montegriffo | Socialist Labour Party | 7,507 |
| Michael Alfred Feetham | Socialist Labour Party | 7,505 |
| Robert Mor | Socialist Labour Party | 7,496 |
| Juan Carlos Perez | Socialist Labour Party | 7,239 |
| Adolfo Canepa | AACR | 4,422 |
| Peter Cecil Montegriffo | AACR | 4,356 |
| Maurice Kenneth Featherstone | AACR | 3,706 |
| George Mascarenhas | AACR | 3,698 |
| Ernest Michael Britto | AACR | 3,640 |
| Reggie Valarino | AACR | 3,626 |
| Kenneth Bartlett Anthony | AACR | 3,595 |
| Terry Cartwright | AACR | 3,519 |
| Joseph Louis Pitaluga | Independent Democrats | 2,091 |
| Marisa Desoiza | Independent Democrats | 1,842 |
| Gladys Perez | Independent Democrats | 1,689 |
| Joseph Bautista | Independent Democrats | 1,503 |
| Richard Michael Desoiza | Independent Democrats | 1,497 |
| James Dominic Rosado | Independent Democrats | 1,464 |
| Richard B. Pitaluga | Independent Democrats | 1,443 |
| Joseph Louis Olivero | Independent Democrats | 1,418 |
| Source: Parliament of Gibraltar | ||