Labour ends Conservatives' 100-year Hexham hold
Labour ended the Conservatives' 100-year hold of Hexham amid a series of major successes across the region.
Joe Morris beat Guy Opperman by 3,000 votes to become the Northumberland seat's first-ever Labour MP.
The Conservatives also lost North Northumberland, where incumbent Anne-Marie Trevelyan was beaten by Labour's David Smith.
Labour also won seats in Newcastle, Gateshead and North and South Tyneside, with Reform finishing second across the region.
Mr Morris said it was a "historic night", adding: "It’s an immense honour and an immense privilege, but also an immense responsibility.
"I’m really excited to start delivering."
Mr Opperman, who had been Hexham's MP since 2010, said it was too early for a "post-mortem" examination.
"Clearly these are very difficult circumstances," he said, adding: "We’re obviously going to have to go away and reflect."
David Smith, the newly-elected Labour MP for North Northumberland, said: "There’s been a massive desire for change, and fatigue and exhaustion over the last 14 years."
On the issue of dualling the A1, he said he would "not make any promises" but would "fight for it".
Ms Trevelyan - who served as both transport and international development secretary - said if he did not sort out the road she would "make his life daily hell".
She said the Conservatives needed to "look forward", adding: "We'll come together, sit down, mourn the loss of talented colleagues and start to rebuild what our core values are."
Newcastle's three seats were held by Labour, with Reform coming second in Newcastle East and Wallsend and Newcastle Central and West.
Chi Onwurah, who has held her seat for Labour, said: "Today has been a day of unity and an overwhelming call for change in our community.
"Our future as a community, as a nation, will be so much brighter together.
"Now is the time to come together for a better Newcastle."
Washington and Gateshead South was held for Labour by Sharon Hodgson who secured 48% of the vote, with Reform coming second, while Jarrow and Gateshead East was held by Labour's Kate Osborne and Gateshead Central and Whickham by Labour's Mark Ferguson.
Labour's Emma Lewell-Buck, who retained her South Shields seat, said it had been a massive night for her and the party and she would be happy to do any job in a new Labour government.
She also said she would be having a few fizzy ones with her team to celebrate.
Emma Foody, the new Labour MP for the newly-created Cramlington and Killingworth seat, said the area's communities had "voted overwhelmingly for change".
"It's been 14 long years for our communities," she said.
"The scale of the challenge is great. We will repay that trust."
Sir Alan Campbell retained his place as Labour MP for Tynemouth, a seat he has held since Tony Blair’s 1997 landslide victory.
Analysis: Red tide floods Hexham
By Richard Moss, BBC Political editor, North East & Cumbria
In 2019, the Conservatives took North East seats they had never won before, but in 2024 the tables have been turned in Hexham.
Tory for 100 years, and never Labour, voters decided to back change and elect Joe Morris.
Labour sensed an opportunity and campaigned relentlessly in the Northumberland seat. Activists were brought in from Tyneside to support local members.
The Conservative candidate Guy Opperman also fought hard in a constituency in which very few houses did not get a knock on the door, but ultimately he couldn’t fight the red tide.
It is a sign Labour can win in rural areas the Conservatives used to count on.
But as some Tories are finding out tonight, it can be tough to hold on to unexpected gains. The challenge then for Labour is whether they can successfully put roots down in previously uncharted territory.
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