Gov. Bob McDonnell endorsed former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination Friday, a day before he finished a distant second in the South Carolina primary.
The endorsement comes in the thick of the unpredictable GOP campaign. Romney earned a decisive victory in New Hampshire Jan. 10, only to see his initial eight-vote victory in Iowa reversed to a 34-vote loss to former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum.
And despite the endorsement of Nikki Haley, the Republican governor of South Carolina, Romney still came in second Saturday in South Carolina, with 28 percent of the vote, to former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, who claimed a 40 percent victory.
On CNBC's "Squawk Box," McDonnell defended Romney, saying, "I think he's got steady momentum. A lot of candidates have been up and down in this race. [Romney] has been the one who has been steady and garnering support."
In his interview with CNBC, McDonnell told voters, "if you want to win the race in November, vote for Mitt Romney. He's the best candidate we've got to beat President Obama."
Experts speculate the endorsement will have the greatest implications for McDonnell's own political career.
"Potentially, [McDonnell's endorsement] benefits one person, Bob McDonnell," Larry Sabato, director of the University's Center for Politics, said in an email. "He's made no secret of the fact that he wants to be Romney's VP nominee."
McDonnell is on the current shortlist of Romney's potential running mates.
"There are more people on the list, such as Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who could add a great deal more to the ticket," Sabato said. "But McDonnell could add Virginia's 13 electoral votes, and he'd be unlikely to cause trouble for Romney elsewhere."
Despite the loss in South Carolina, Sabato said Romney is "the only candidate with the national organization and financing to grind out a convention majority."
"Romney is quite likely to be the nominee, sooner or later," he added.
Although Virginia has historically been characterized as conservative, it recently has become more of a moderate swing state. "The contest in Virginia will be highly competitive in November," Sabato said.
The next Republican primary will take place in Florida Jan. 31.
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