Former Wildrose leader Danielle Smith admitted Thursday she was “naive” in buying into the merits of defecting to the Prentice Tories.

Smith told talk show hosts on AM770 radio that she might well have been sold a bill of goods by then-premier Jim Prentice that the PCs would deliver a fiscally conservative budget in response to a mass floor-crossing of Wildrose members last December.

“That may be — everything he said up to the minute the budget was going to be released led me to believe he was going to be fiscally conservative,” said Smith of the budget she said contained too many tax hikes and too few cuts amid huge deficits.

She also said it came as a shock that she and other Wildrose defectors would quickly face unwinnable nominations in preparation for an early general election call.

“When I found out in early January that I would have to do that with emotions still high, I was finished,” she said.

“It would have taken a full year if the coming together of our two parties was to be genuine.”

Smith and two other ex-Wildrosers lost their PC nominations in late March and five others were defeated as Tories in Tuesday’s election that brought an NDP majority into power.

Smith said she ultimately hoped the floor crossing would lead to a full merger of the two parties that would unite the right in time for a 2016 election.

“It was very, very naive, I get that now but that’s how we thought it would unfold,” she said.

“They’re going to have to figure out some mechanism to come together but are going to face major barriers.”

There was some relief in not winning the PC nomination in Highwood, said Smith, given the unpopularity of the Prentice budget.

“I wasn’t going to defend that budget and I’m glad I didn’t have to in the last 28 days,” she said.

Even if the mass defection hadn’t happened, Smith said she doubts it would have stopped the meteoric success of Rachel Notley’s NDP.

The electorate, she said, has become increasingly progressive, something significantly driven by the rise of liberal-leaning mayors in Calgary and Edmonton.

Smith said she now plans to do charitable volunteer work.

bill.kaufmann@sunmedia.ca

On Twitter: @SUNBillKaufmann