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Rick Perry's entrance into the Republican presidential race over the weekend will likely help boost the national profile of Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, who replaced Perry as chairman of the Republican Governors Association on Monday.

McDonnell previously served as vice-chair of the 29-member association, which, among other objectives, works to get Republican gubernatorial candidates elected. But the new post catapults McDonnell onto the national political stage and gives the popular governor of a key battleground state increased access to financial donor networks.

McDonnell delivered Republicans a substantial victory in 2009 by winning the governor's mansion only a few months after President Obama made history by becoming the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Virginia since 1964. McDonnell’s triumph was an early sign of the tough road ahead for the president and Democrats in the 2010 midterms, in which the Republicans gained control of the House of Representatives.

As RGA chairman, McDonnell will follow in the footsteps of several Republicans who have risen to national prominence, such as Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour; former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney; President Ronald Reagan, who held the post when he was governor of California; and, of course, Perry, who helped raise $22.1 million for the association in the first half of this year. But just as the post gives McDonnell national visibility, it also brings serious pressure. Five Republican governors are up for re-election over the next year. If the RGA doesn’t deliver on fundraising and election results, he will be held responsible.

In a statement, McDonnell said Republican governors would have an “unprecedented impact” in shaping the 2012 elections. “I look forward to working with my fellow Republican governors to expand our majority and ensure the RGA remains the most effective political committee in the nation,” he said. “Republican governors are leading the way in helping the private sector create new jobs, reforming government and getting our economy back on track.”

McDonnell also appears open to playing an even bigger part in the 2012 presidential race. Since building a reputation as a jobs creator and a pro-business leader whose state ended its fiscal year with a surplus, McDonnell has been mentioned in election conversation as a possible vice presidential contender next November. The governor expressed interest in the job to Politico in an interview published Monday.

“I’d be very interested. It is a swing state. I’m not asking for the call. I’m not looking for the call. As I’ve said many times, I’ve got the best job in America,” he said. “But I think anybody who is in public life, if a presidential nominee called him and said, ‘I need your help to win,’ it would be a tremendous honor.”

The governor enjoys high marks from his constituents, with 62 percent approving of his job performance, according to a recent Washington Post poll. But Virginia only allows its governors to serve one term, so McDonnell will be out a job by 2014. He has already been whispered about in political circles as a possible presidential candidate in 2016, and this new post, if successful, will certainly help him further build a resume and the networks needed for higher office.

McDonnell, though, insists he has his sights focused on the upcoming election and leading Virginia. “I’ve got to do in four years what most governors get eight years to do if they’re doing a good job,” he told Politico. By 2016, he said, “my kids will all be out of college and my life will be a little bit different.”