Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Honour said on Thursday that he would release his tax returns, just like DFL Gov. Mark Dayton releases his.

"I plan to do the same thing that Gov. Dayton does," said Honour, who announced his campaign on Wednesday. "I'll follow his lead in this governor's race."

Honour is the first high-profile Republican to announce a run against Dayton.

In a brief interview, Honour began to sketch out a campaign that involve pitching his business background -- he's been a venture capitalist who has worked on " fixing troubled businesses," his bio says -- as one that can help him create a "good economic foundation" Minnesota foundation. That, he said, involves addressing the educational achievement gap, not raising taxes and making government more transparent and efficient. He did not address exactly how he would achieve those goals.

Honour, who has a political background as a contribution but not as a candidate, said he plans to vie for the GOP endorsement but, "I'm expecting to be in a primary."

He also said that he support allowing gay couples all the rights of marriage through civil unions but does not support legalizing same sex marriage and would veto a legalization measure if it came to his desk as governor.

On Thursday, Pat Shortridge, who finished a term as the Minnesota Republican Party chair this month, helped Honour launch his campaign. Asked if Shortridge was a consultant, Honour said on that he was "a good friend."