Tomás Santos

Tomás Santos Munilla was born in Logroño, La Rioja, on 26 November 1950, and remained closely tied to the city all his life, as well as to the village of Torrecilla en Cameros. He qualified as a perito mercantil, a commercial accountant, and worked for many years at Banco Popular. In 1979 he joined the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) and the UGT trade union, and he went on to serve as treasurer of UGT La Rioja. He also sat on the council of the Valdezcaray ski resort and chaired the advisory council of RTVE in La Rioja.

Santos entered Logroño city council in 2003 and served as spokesman of the Socialist group until 2011, leading the opposition to the Partido Popular government of Mayor Julio Revuelta from 2003 to 2007. He headed the Socialist list in the municipal elections of 27 May 2007 and became mayor through a coalition agreement with the Partido Riojano, then led by Ángel Varea, ending twelve years of Partido Popular rule.

His four years in office coincided with the 2008 financial crisis and the collapse of the property market, which sharply reduced municipal revenue and shifted his priorities towards social policy. During his mandate the first phase of the works to bury the railway line through Logroño was awarded and begun. His administration also built the Casa Cuna network of municipal nursery schools, the El Arco and El Cubo buildings and the Centro de la Cultura del Rioja in the old town, began the Rafael Azcona public library, later opened by his successor, built the Revellín and Titín III pelota courts, completed the long-stalled Toyo Ito housing development and pedestrianised calle Bretón. Colleagues recalled that every Wednesday he took the bus to one of the city's neighbourhoods.

In the elections of 22 May 2011 the Partido Popular led by Cuca Gamarra won an absolute majority, and he handed over the mayoralty in June 2011. Days before leaving office he told Rioja2 that he would never again do front-line politics but would remain in the party and at the disposal of his colleagues, which he did.

Santos was married and had two children. He had Parkinson's disease, which he spoke about publicly on many occasions. When he received the city's Gold Medal in 2024 he thanked his parents for teaching him to earn his living honestly, and sport for teaching him effort, perseverance and teamwork.

Tomás Santos died on the afternoon of Tuesday 27 October 2026 at the Hospital San Pedro in Logroño, aged 75. He had been admitted on Monday 19 October after a domestic accident, and his health had worsened in the following days. His death was confirmed to the EFE news agency by the PSOE of La Rioja and reported by La Rioja, eldiario.es and Europa Press.

The mayor of Logroño, Conrado Escobar, described him as a mayor "de calle, con estilo propio" and as kind, approachable, committed and attentive. Spain's prime minister and PSOE leader, Pedro Sánchez, wrote on X that he had been a dedicated mayor who helped Logroño prosper. Funeral arrangements had not been announced at the time of the first reports.

Santos is remembered as the mayor under whom Logroño began burying its railway line, one of the largest public works in the city's recent history, and for cultural and social facilities including the Centro de la Cultura del Rioja, the Rafael Azcona library and the Casa Cuna nurseries. His portrait in the city hall gallery shows him on calle Bretón, the street he pedestrianised. In 2024 he received the Gold Medal of Logroño, and in 2026 the Gold Insignia of UGT La Rioja.