Genuine Parts Co. has elected a new president, and is setting up a possible succession plan for the company.

Paul Donahue, the company's executive vice president and president of the U.S. automotive parts group, is taking the title from current chairman, president and CEO Tom Gallagher. Gallagher has been the company's president for more than 20 years.

A company spokesman, Sid Jones, said while Donahue has not been named as Gallagher's designated successor, and Gallagher has no immediate plans to leave the company, Donahue is being positioned to allow a steady progression.

Donahue is the seventh president of Atlanta-based Genuine Parts Co. Prior to joining the company, Donahue, 55, was president at Newell Rubbermaid's Sanford North America division.