Constituency Profile: Washington & Sunderland West
The constituency of Washington and Sunderland West includes the UK's largest car plant, which was opened by Nissan in 1984. It is estimated that at least 10,000 people are employed both at the factory itself and in the local supply chain.
The constituency was created from a number of previous seats, prior to the 2010 General Election.
Sharon Hodgson (Labour) won the seat in 2010. She was first elected in 2005 and is standing again.
The 2010 result:
Labour: 19615 (52.54%)
Conservative: 8,157 (21.85%)
Lib Dem: 6,382 (17.09%)
BNP: 1,913 (5.12%)
UKIP: 1,267 (3.38)
Majority: 11,458 (30.69%)
The 2015 candidates:
Aileen Casey (UKIP)
Bob Dhillon (Con)
Dominic Haney (Lib Dem)
Sharon Hodgson (Labour)
Gary Duncan (TUSC)
Anthony Murphy (Green Party)