Junior Foreign Office Minister Chris Mullin held the Sunderland South seat with a reduced majority as the constituency was once again the first seat to declare in the British election.
A ballot box is rushed into the Sunderland South count
Last time out the city returned a result for Sunderland South in just 43 minutes to set a new record. This year they missed out by just 45 seconds.
Mullin held his seat in 2001 with a majority of 13,667 which was reduced to 11,059 this time out. The swing from Labour to the Conservatives was almost 4 percent.
Mr Mullin said: "It would appear from this result that there will be an unprecedented third Labour government.
"We now have the chance to shape the lives of an entire generation and we must use it wisely."
The turnout for Sunderland South was 49.9% compared to a figure of 48.3% in 2001.
Decalring the first seat is something of a matter of pride for the local authorities in Sunderland. Once the polling stations closed vans rushed the ballot boxes from the 31 polling stations to the city's main Crowtree Leisure Centre where 120 counters were on duty.
Sunderland South result in full:
Chris Mullin (Lab) 17,982
Robert Oliver (C) 6,923
Gareth Kane (LD) 4,492
David Guynan (BNP) 1,166
Rosalyn Warner (Loony) 149