Washington and Gateshead South.
Labour Party MP Sharon Hodgson holds the seat on 47.8% of the vote — a split-council geography across 2 councils.
2 Jun 2026
Sharon Hodgson's most prominent recent coverage came not from the chamber but from a criminal act: in September 2025, her Washington constituency office was set on fire in a suspected arson attack, prompting a police investigation and an arrest. Her response -- stating she would "not be deterred" and would continue supporting constituents -- drew cross-party solidarity. In the Commons she has voted in lockstep with Labour throughout this parliament, backing the government's King's Speech programme, supporting steel nationalisation, and voting for tighter asylum support rules that allow ministers to withdraw accommodation from asylum seekers who work illegally.
A 100% party-line voter with no rebel votes on record, Hodgson participates in roughly two thirds of Commons divisions -- below the average for most active MPs, though participation rates vary widely. Her speeches tell a clearer story: health and social care dominate, accounting for more than half of her 111 contributions across 52 debates, with economy, jobs, and local government also featuring regularly. Compared with her Labour colleagues, she votes more consistently in favour of public services funding and child welfare, but deviates notably on pension protection, where she is 26 percentage points below the Labour average.
Hodgson has sat as a Washington and Gateshead South MP since 2005 and holds no current committee roles. Her long tenure and concentrated focus on health and social care suggest a well-established constituency and policy base rather than a parliamentarian seeking a higher profile. Recent news coverage is limited to the arson incident; no data on her wider local media presence is available beyond the past 90 days.
Ward-level direction-of-travel: who controls what, who flipped recently, who holds the line. Each ward links to the council that runs it.
| Ward | Latest winner | Votes | Council | Last cycle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birtley | Joe Sowerby | 892 | Gateshead Lab | May 2024 |
| Castle | Denny Wilson | 1,130 | Sunderland Lab | May 2024 |
| Lamesley | Judith Turner | 1,447 | Gateshead Lab | May 2024 |
| Redhill | Alison Smith | 931 | Sunderland Lab | May 2024 |
| Washington Central | Dianne Elizabeth Snowdon | 1,673 | Sunderland Lab | May 2024 |
| Washington East | Sean Robert Laws | 1,632 | Sunderland Lab | May 2024 |
| Washington North | Michael Lee Walker | 1,389 | Sunderland Lab | May 2024 |
| Washington South | Brandon Mark Feeley | 1,555 | Sunderland Lab | May 2024 |
| Washington West | Jimmy Warne | 1,412 | Sunderland Lab | May 2024 |
Source · Democracy Club · DCLEAPIL v1.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The seat’s population is concentrated in Washington (51,878), with Sunderland (22,292) as the second pole. Total population across named built-up areas: 95,127.
Source · ONS Built-Up Areas · Census 2021
| Settlement | Pop. | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Washington | 51,878 | large town |
| Sunderland | 22,292 | city |
| Birtley | 14,404 | town |
| Kibblesworth | 1,795 | village |
| Rural & dispersed | 1,625 | village |
| Springwell | 1,574 | village |
Headline indicators.
| Indicator | Local | National | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment rate | 52.8% | 57.1% | -8% |
| Owner-occupied | 56.7% | 63.1% | -10% |
| Private rented | 12.4% | 20.0% | -38% |
| Social rented | 30.9% | 16.8% | +84% |
Ethnicity.
Source · Census 2021
Population by age & sexCensus 2021 · 18 bands · click to expand
Source · Census 2021 (ONS) · % of usual residents; tick marks the median seat per band
Income tax contribution.
| Total income tax | £155m |
| Taxpayers | 40,000 |
| Median per taxpayer | £2,310 |
| Mean per taxpayer | £3,880 |
Source · HMRC SPI · ±8% confidence
Where the money flows back in.
This constituency is served by Sunderland and Gateshead. Each council’s service spend, peer rank and supplier list lives on its own page — open from the meta block above or the compass strip below.
Move the income slider on My place to see income tax, NI, VAT and council tax against your earnings — the household lens.
Headline rate.
By category.
Source · data.police.uk · 3-month rate per 1,000 pop
2024 — full result.
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sharon HodgsonWON | Lab | 17,682 | 47.8 |
| Paul Donaghy | Ref | 10,769 | 29.1 |
| Shaun Parsons | Con | 4,654 | 12.6 |
| Michal Chantkowski | Grn | 1,687 | 4.6 |
| Ciaran Morrissey | LD | 1,602 | 4.3 |
| Sharon McLafferty | Ind | 627 | 1.7 |
Turnout 37,021
Prior contests.
Created on the 2023 boundary review. 2024 General Election was the first contest on these boundaries.
Sources, methods & last update
2023 boundary review
DCLEAPIL v1.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Census 2021
National avg over 575 seats
±8% confidence
LSOA-aggregated · rolling 12mo