The new pro-Scottish independence party is keen to get other well-known politicians such as Alex Salmond and Tommy Sheridan on board.
Dave Thompson said Alliance for Independence will welcome anyone.
The 70-year-old grandad, who had been a member of the SNP since he was 16, was himself one of the best-known figures within the party.
Alliance aims to be an umbrella group uniting smaller pro-independence campaigns.
Proponents believe this would be more productive than the “both votes SNP” approach of previous years and has been endorsed by figures including sitting SNP MP Kenny MacAskill.
On whether he’d like to see the former SNP First Minister join the Alliance, Thompson said: “We would welcome anyone and certainly high-profile people would be good.”
While Salmond is said to be dismissive, some of Sheridan’s former friends are already involved.
Gaelic-speaking Thompson was elected from the regional list as an MSP for the Highlands and Islands in 2007.
Four years later, he was elected for the Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch constituency.
In 2014, Thompson was one of seven SNP MSPs who voted against allowing same-sex marriage in Scotland.
