The figure of Susana Sumelzo, currently Secretary of State for Ibero-America and one of the Socialist leaders historically close to Pedro Sánchez, has in just a few days gone from institutional discretion to the eye of the media storm. Various press reports have focused on public contracts awarded to companies linked to her family and on her connections with companies under investigation in the so-called “Koldo case” and the alleged network surrounding Santos Cerdán, which has reignited the debate on possible conflicts of interest in the Prime Minister’s inner circle.
Who is Susana Sumelzo and what role does she play in “sanchismo”?
Susana Sumelzo Jordán (Zaragoza, 1969) is an experienced leader of the PSOE. For more than a decade, she has served as both a senator and a parliament member representing Zaragoza. Since December 2023, she has held the role 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 participated in the federal executive and for years has been seen as one of Pedro Sánchez’s dedicated deputies, having been part of his trusted inner circle since the primaries that returned him to the general secretariat in 2017. Some media outlets and individuals within the party already describe 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 encompass a variety of tasks, from the adaptation and upkeep of irrigation canals to significant undertakings like the Valdeliberola collector. This project, with a budget of 10 million euros, was ultimately awarded to Sumelzo S.A. after being retracted from another company that had originally secured the tender.
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 is compounded by other “corporate coincidences” revealed by media outlets such as El Debate, El Español and Esdiario. On the one hand, investigative reports indicate that Sumelzo S.A.’s headquarters in Zaragoza are in the same building as Soluciones de Gestión S.L., a key company in the face-mask scheme linked to former minister José Luis Ábalos and the Koldo case.
In addition, it is 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 being investigated 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: pressure on Moncloa and the “circle of trust” narrative
Politically, the case breaks out at a time when Pedro Sánchez’s Government is already bearing a considerable cost from other corruption investigations affecting figures in his entourage, such as the Koldo case, probes into contracts awarded during the pandemic and the cases opened in relation to the professional activities of his wife, Begoña Gómez.
Opposition parties and critical commentators are currently depicting the reports about Sumelzo as elements of an alleged “broader scheme” involving favors and contracts to firms linked with the President’s trusted circle, highlighting that the Secretary of State ranks among his closest political allies and stressing the volume of public works awarded to the family construction company during Socialist administrations, both regional and national.
Another unresolved issue in the PSOE’s crisis of credibility
The Sumelzo case, therefore, becomes part of the collection of matters that are eroding the PSOE and Sánchez’s Government’s reputation for integrity, against a backdrop of increasing public skepticism towards institutions and intensified demands for transparency in the links between politics and business.
For now, the answer lies within three elements:
- The investigations carried out by the UCO and the National Court into the networks of public contracts linked to companies related to the Sumelzo family.
- Possible future judicial decisions that could either restrict liabilities or, on the other hand, broaden the scope of the cases.
- The political response from Moncloa and the PSOE, both in terms of accepting responsibilities and implementing 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.