Susana Sumelzo, currently serving as the Secretary of State for Ibero-America and a Socialist leader historically aligned with Pedro Sánchez, has seen her role shift rapidly from institutional discretion to becoming a focal point of media attention. Various press articles have spotlighted public contracts awarded to companies linked to her family and her connections to firms under investigation in the so-called “Koldo case” and the alleged network involving Santos Cerdán, which has reignited the debate on potential conflicts of interest within the Prime Minister’s inner circle.
Who is Susana Sumelzo and what role does she have in “sanchismo”?
Susana Sumelzo Jordán (Zaragoza, 1969) is a seasoned leader of the PSOE. For over ten years, she has been a senator and a member of parliament representing Zaragoza, and since December 2023, she has occupied the position of Secretary of State for Ibero-America and the Caribbean and for Spanish in the World, within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Within the party, Sumelzo has been involved in the federal executive and for years has been regarded as one of Pedro Sánchez’s loyal lieutenants, being part of his trusted inner circle since the primaries that reinstated him to the general secretariat in 2017. Some media outlets and individuals within the party already refer to her as a close friend of Pedro Sánchez, with whom he might have had a romantic involvement.
Contracts to the family company Sumelzo S.A. and the UCO’s scrutiny
The origin of the controversy can be linked to public works contracts awarded to the Aragonese construction firm Sumelzo S.A., connected to the Secretary of State’s father and brother. According to The Objective, since Sánchez assumed office at La Moncloa, the company has obtained contracts valued at around 16 million euros in recent years through the Ebro River Basin Authority and other agencies under Socialist-led ministries, with most being granted during Teresa Ribera’s tenure at the Ministry for Ecological Transition.
The contracts include a range of responsibilities, from the modification and maintenance of irrigation channels to major projects such as the Valdeliberola collector. This initiative, with a budget of 10 million euros, was eventually granted to Sumelzo S.A. after being withdrawn from another company that had initially won the bid.
The Civil Guard’s Central Operational Unit (UCO) has launched an investigation into Sumelzo S.A. after uncovering a payment of 12,100 euros to Servinabar. This company is allegedly used by Santos Cerdán and his partner Antxon Alonso to channel commissions linked to the face-mask operation and several other contracts, coinciding with significant contracts awarded to the family construction firm.
Explored plans include intertwined headquarters and family enterprises
The controversy has been further fueled by additional “corporate coincidences” brought to light by media outlets such as El Debate, El Español, and Esdiario. On one hand, investigative reports disclose that Sumelzo S.A.’s headquarters in Zaragoza share the same building with Soluciones de Gestión S.L., a key company involved in the face-mask scheme linked to former minister José Luis Ábalos and the Koldo case.
In addition, it has been reported that a business owned by either Susana Sumelzo’s father or a cousin shared its registered office with Servinabar, the company of Santos Cerdán, which is currently under investigation for allegedly receiving kickbacks in public contracts.
These intersections in registered addresses and business connections have become a crucial point for those discussing a business “ecosystem” surrounding Sumelzo’s family, which has benefited from decisions made by administrations led by the PSOE. However, at present, the investigations are focused on the companies and individuals such as Cerdán and his associates, rather than on the Secretary of State personally.
The political analysis: stress on Moncloa and the “circle of trust” storyline
Politically, this situation arises at a time when Pedro Sánchez’s Government is already facing substantial consequences from other corruption investigations involving people in his circle, like the Koldo case, probes into contracts awarded during the pandemic, and the cases launched regarding the professional activities of his wife, Begoña Gómez.
Opposition parties and critical commentators are now portraying the reports concerning Sumelzo as part of a supposed “wider plan” of favors and contracts to companies associated with the President’s trusted circle, emphasizing that the Secretary of State is among his closest political allies and underscoring the amount of public works granted to the family construction company under Socialist administrations, both regional and national.
Another unresolved issue in the PSOE’s crisis of credibility
The Sumelzo case thus adds to the list of fronts eroding the image of integrity of the PSOE and Sánchez’s Government, in a context of growing public distrust towards institutions and increasing demands for transparency in the ties between politics and business.
For now, the answer lies within three elements:
- The evolution of investigations by the UCO and the National Court into the networks of public contracts in which companies linked to the Sumelzo family appear.
- Possible future judicial decisions, which could either narrow down responsibilities or, on the contrary, broaden the scope of the cases.
- The political response from Moncloa and the PSOE, both in terms of assuming responsibilities and in terms of reforms to mechanisms designed to prevent conflicts of interest.
In the meantime, Susana Sumelzo continues to hold her position and asserts that her political career is entirely separate from her family’s business activities.