A distinguishing feature of the regime was that, unlike the situation in most of non-democratic Europe, it never transformed itself into a full-scale dictatorship. Freedom of speech and press and political parties were never legally abolished, and opponents were usually dealt with via "unidentified perpetrators" rather than court sentences. Sanation allowed the 1928 election to be relatively free, but was dealt a setback when its supporters in the BBWR came up far short of a majority. For the 1930 election, Sanation left nothing to chance; more than 20 prominent opposition leaders were arrested and the opposition press was gagged. Under these conditions, the BBWR won over 46 percent of the vote and a large majority in both houses.