Senate Minority Leader David R. Brinkley, whose New Market home was the site of a domestic disturbance in May, will relinquish the leadership post as early as next month when Senate Republicans are scheduled to meet in Annapolis.

The second-term senator said the decision was based largely on getting his personal life in order and focusing on his job as a financial adviser.

"It's a matter of trying to address the challenges, and there are many," he said Monday. "I have to direct my efforts towards home and to my clients and to my community, and that's the best way I know to do it."

Frederick County Sheriff's Office deputies were called to Brinkley's home on May 30 for a report of a domestic dispute. According to police, Brinkley clashed and his wife, Sallie Brinkley, over marital issues. No criminal charges were filed and the senator was identified in the police report as the victim.

The GOP caucus publicly stood behind Brinkley. The decision to not seek the leadership post came within the last week; he said he was not pressured into stepping aside.

Senate Republicans elect their leadership team each year, but they rarely change in the middle of a four-year term. Brinkley, 48, served two terms in the House of Delegates before winning his current Senate seat in 2002. He was narrowly chosen to lead the caucus in 2007. Brinkley was considered a more genial voice than his main competitor, Sen. Andrew P. Harris (R-Dist. 7) of Cockeysville.

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Dist. 27) of Chesapeake Beach praised the GOP's tact under Brinkley and said that he maintained a good working relationship with him.

"It's a very difficult job being chairman of a minority caucus," he said. "You want to make certain that there is an opposition party and that the views of the opposition are known, but at the same time, you don't want to be labeled as an obstructionist."

Brinkley declined to endorse his successor and said he wasn't sure whether he'd recuse himself from choosing the next caucus leader, which could take place at the Sept. 16 meeting. But he said the caucus should choose someone who can both represent GOP values and work across party lines.

Brinkley said he hopes to resolve his personal affairs soon and plans to run for re-election in 2010.