RICHMOND, Va. -- Four-term Virginia Republican Eric Cantor is undergoing intense document reviews by John McCain's presidential campaign, FOX News has learned through a Republican official familiar with the situation.

The source said personal documents of Cantor's are under review as McCain and his Democratic rival, Barack Obama, have allowed the public face of their secretive vice presidential search process surface in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Cantor, the current chief minority whip in the House, and McCain met privately weeks ago in the Hamptons and Cantor has helped raise more than $10 million from the Jewish community for McCain's White House bid.

Cantor is the highest ranking Jewish Republican in Congress, and his addition to the ticket is seen by Republicans as a pathway to Jewish support in Florida and a way to secure Virginia for McCain.

Cantor has been a visible McCain surrogate for weeks, appearing frequently on cable news outlets chiefly to promote McCain's positions on domestic and economic issues. He has been a forceful critic of Obama's resistance to lifting the federal ban on oil and gas drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

Since his four terms in the Virginia House of Delegates starting in the early 1990s, Cantor has been part of the anti-tax wing of Virginia's Republican Party. His longtime advocacy for business and corporate interests in the General Assembly earned Cantor the derisive nickname "Overdog" from Democrats in Richmond.

McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said the campaign would have "no comment on anything related to the vice presidential issue." Cantor, through a spokesman, also declined to comment.

Obama is also considering a Virginian for a running mate, as Gov. Timothy M. Kaine has been mentioned as a possible candidate.

Cantor and Kaine's consideration underscored the near-obsessional nature of both campaigns' focus on winning Virginia's 13 electoral votes.

Mark Warner, the Democratic candidate for Senate this year, recently polled to see who would be his toughest statewide opponent and, sources tell FOX News, found that Cantor ran better statewide than Rep. Tom Davis and former Gov. Jim Gilmore.

Neither Cantor nor Kaine are certain running mate picks and interest in them could be as much diversion as a serious quest for a running mate. What is serious is the multi-layered chess game going on between the Obama and McCain camps over figuring out how to win Virginia.

FOX News' Major Garrett and the Associated Press contributed to this report.