Members of Alberta's Wildrose Alliance Party have tempered their conservative message in order to appeal to a broader range of voters.

At the party's annual meeting in Red Deer, Alta., on Saturday, members rejected policy motions supporting nuclear power and putting gun ownership on par with property rights.

However, they are supporting the development of an Alberta constitution and exploring the creation of a provincial police force.

Party Leader Danielle Smith said there was a recognition on the floor that electoral success lies in attracting — not offending — the majority of voters.

"We want to be a conservative party but we also want to be an electable party," she said. "We believe that conservative policies are what's going to get us elected but there may be some where the public isn't on board with us.

"I think there was that common-sense acknowledgement that certain policies may just be going too far relative to where the average voter is. I just think that's wise politics."

Smith said success lies in building a conservative, big-tent party, not one that's narrowly focused.

The Wildrose Alliance was formed in January 2008 and has four sitting MLAs.

Calgary's Paul Hinman was the first and only person elected to sit in the legislature as a Wildrose MLA.

Calgary's Heather Forsyth and Airdrie's Rob Anderson both defected from Alberta's Progressive Conservatives to the Wildrose Alliance in January. On Friday, ex-Tory Guy Boutilier — who was kicked out of the Conservative caucus last year for criticizing the government — announced he would become the party's fourth caucus member.

Speaking at the annual meeting, Smith said the door is closing for current Tory MLAs thinking of defecting to the Wildrose party. She said nominations for Wildrose candidates will start in the fall, so any Tories thinking of jumping ship need to act soon.