diff --git a/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/panelViewlet.ts b/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/panelViewlet.ts
index 03fb2022e2ced148831571b3705110b2ac81d789..f9717eccef29649ca6d8ee93d0d90dbae610c5b0 100644
--- a/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/panelViewlet.ts
+++ b/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/panelViewlet.ts
@@ -134,7 +134,7 @@ interface IViewletPanelItem {
 
 export class PanelViewlet extends Viewlet {
 
-	protected lastFocusedPanel: ViewletPanel | undefined;
+	private lastFocusedPanel: ViewletPanel | undefined;
 	private panelItems: IViewletPanelItem[] = [];
 	private panelview: PanelView;
 
@@ -195,7 +195,11 @@ export class PanelViewlet extends Viewlet {
 		if (this.lastFocusedPanel) {
 			this.lastFocusedPanel.focus();
 		} else if (this.panelItems.length > 0) {
-			this.panelItems[0].panel.focus();
+			for (const { panel } of this.panelItems) {
+				if (panel.isExpanded()) {
+					panel.focus();
+				}
+			}
 		}
 	}
 
@@ -213,8 +217,13 @@ export class PanelViewlet extends Viewlet {
 	addPanel(panel: ViewletPanel, size: number, index = this.panelItems.length - 1): void {
 		const disposables: IDisposable[] = [];
 		const onDidFocus = panel.onDidFocus(() => this.lastFocusedPanel = panel, null, disposables);
+		const onDidChange = panel.onDidChange(() => {
+			if (panel === this.lastFocusedPanel && !panel.isExpanded()) {
+				this.lastFocusedPanel = undefined;
+			}
+		}, null, disposables);
 		const styler = attachPanelStyler(panel, this.themeService);
-		const disposable = combinedDisposable([onDidFocus, styler]);
+		const disposable = combinedDisposable([onDidFocus, styler, onDidChange]);
 		const panelItem: IViewletPanelItem = { panel, disposable };
 
 		this.panelItems.splice(index, 0, panelItem);
diff --git a/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/viewsViewlet.ts b/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/viewsViewlet.ts
index 7bc93ba609f0887b2f91e7ae6df114211016c4b3..a7cdde07173d2ebc24a80c35eb51bbd1b97f0c0f 100644
--- a/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/viewsViewlet.ts
+++ b/src/vs/workbench/browser/parts/views/viewsViewlet.ts
@@ -347,16 +347,23 @@ export class ViewsViewlet extends PanelViewlet {
 		super.shutdown();
 	}
 
-	toggleViewVisibility(id: string, visible?: boolean): void {
+	toggleViewVisibility(id: string): void {
 		const view = this.getView(id);
 		let viewState = this.viewsStates.get(id);
 
-		if (!viewState || (visible === true && view) || (visible === false && !view)) {
+		if (!viewState) {
 			return;
 		}
 
 		viewState.isHidden = !!view;
-		this.updateViews();
+		this.updateViews()
+			.then(() => {
+				if (!viewState.isHidden) {
+					this.getView(id).focus();
+				} else {
+					this.focus();
+				}
+			});
 	}
 
 	private onViewsRegistered(views: IViewDescriptor[]): void {
diff --git a/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/explorerViewlet.ts b/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/explorerViewlet.ts
index b7b9b3cd8d8e41d120e0a56bb85d449fb214731b..7d3b763b318a379ba9551f6432ee7ebf5eb47001 100644
--- a/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/explorerViewlet.ts
+++ b/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/explorerViewlet.ts
@@ -226,67 +226,6 @@ export class ExplorerViewlet extends PersistentViewsViewlet implements IExplorer
 		return super.setVisible(visible);
 	}
 
-	public focus(): void {
-		const hasOpenedEditors = !!this.editorGroupService.getStacksModel().activeGroup;
-
-		let openEditorsView = this.getOpenEditorsView();
-		if (this.lastFocusedPanel && this.lastFocusedPanel.isExpanded() && this.hasSelectionOrFocus(this.lastFocusedPanel as ViewsViewletPanel)) {
-			if (this.lastFocusedPanel !== openEditorsView || hasOpenedEditors) {
-				this.lastFocusedPanel.focus();
-				return;
-			}
-		}
-
-		if (this.hasSelectionOrFocus(openEditorsView) && hasOpenedEditors) {
-			return openEditorsView.focus();
-		}
-
-		let explorerView = this.getExplorerView();
-		if (this.hasSelectionOrFocus(explorerView)) {
-			return explorerView.focus();
-		}
-
-		if (openEditorsView && openEditorsView.isExpanded() && hasOpenedEditors) {
-			return openEditorsView.focus(); // we have entries in the opened editors view to focus on
-		}
-
-		if (explorerView && explorerView.isExpanded()) {
-			return explorerView.focus();
-		}
-
-		let emptyView = this.getEmptyView();
-		if (emptyView && emptyView.isExpanded()) {
-			return emptyView.focusBody();
-		}
-
-		super.focus();
-	}
-
-	private hasSelectionOrFocus(view: ViewsViewletPanel): boolean {
-		if (!view) {
-			return false;
-		}
-
-		if (!view.isExpanded()) {
-			return false;
-		}
-
-		if (view instanceof ExplorerView) {
-			const viewer = view.getViewer();
-			if (!viewer) {
-				return false;
-			}
-
-			return !!viewer.getFocus() || (viewer.getSelection() && viewer.getSelection().length > 0);
-
-		}
-		if (view instanceof OpenEditorsView && !!view.getList()) {
-			return view.getList().isDOMFocused();
-		}
-
-		return false;
-	}
-
 	public getActionRunner(): IActionRunner {
 		if (!this.actionRunner) {
 			this.actionRunner = new ActionRunner(this.viewletState);
diff --git a/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/views/openEditorsView.ts b/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/views/openEditorsView.ts
index d1971cbbbb4a12d3727b81e934b4ce9cf4f84962..ed1edf09a3effa4ef74a62e6e32e543dc0c82549 100644
--- a/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/views/openEditorsView.ts
+++ b/src/vs/workbench/parts/files/electron-browser/views/openEditorsView.ts
@@ -216,6 +216,11 @@ export class OpenEditorsView extends ViewsViewletPanel {
 		});
 	}
 
+	public focus(): void {
+		this.list.domFocus();
+		super.focus();
+	}
+
 	public getList(): WorkbenchList<OpenEditor | IEditorGroup> {
 		return this.list;
 	}