DETROIT (AP) – General Motors CEO Mary Barra is taking on the added role of chairman at the nation’s largest automaker. The company’s directors Monday unanimously elected her to lead the board, effective immediately. She replaces former Cummins Inc. Chairman and CEO Theodore Solso as GM’s chairman. He will stay on as the board’s lead independent director, the company said Monday in a statement. Barra, 54, took over as CEO in January of 2014, becoming the first woman to lead a major global automaker. Her appointment came shortly before GM became embroiled in a scandal over faulty small-car ignition switches. She led GM through the crisis and a related series of embarrassing safety recalls.
