State House Speaker Calvin Say said Thursday that he would step down as speaker, recognizing he no longer has the votes to remain in power but appealing to majority Demo­crats to organize without the help of Republicans.

Say, the longest-serving House speaker in state history, recommended Rep. Marcus Oshiro, chairman of the House Finance Committee, as his successor.

But Rep. Joseph Souki, who was replaced as speaker by Say in 1998, has already secured the votes of 23 Demo­crats and seven Republicans to remove Say from the top post. Souki’s 30 votes are four more than the 26 needed to control the 51-member House.

Oshiro said he has Say’s 21 votes and thinks there are Demo­crats in Souki’s coalition who are uncomfortable enough about organizing with Republicans to join him. Yet, with Say stepping down, Demo­crats who have been loyal to him might now be less compelled to stay together.

Say’s decision tilts the leadership dispute toward Souki and his unusual alliance with dissident Demo­crats and Republicans. Dissidents, who generally represent the progressive wing of the Demo­cratic Party, have tried to remove the more conservative Say for several years. It took a partnership with Souki, a wily back-room operator, and the Republicans for the dissidents to finally prevail.

"I did a lot of soul-searching at this point," Say (D, Palolo-St. Louis Heights-Kaimuki) said at a news conference with Oshiro at the state Capitol. "And it’s come to my conclusion that it is the best time on behalf of the majority caucus, on behalf of the Demo­cratic Party, on behalf of the people of the state of Hawaii that I do step down and then convey the mantle, or the torch, to the finance chair."

Say, 60, was chosen by Demo­crats as speaker in November 1998 but did not officially take the gavel from Souki until the 1999 session. Say, like Souki before him, has controlled the Demo­cratic caucus with a rigid hand and has earned a reputation in his 14-year reign as a skillful negotiator who often prevailed in tests of will with the state Senate and the Governor’s Office.

Say will remain speaker until a new leader takes over when the next session opens in January. Say, who was first elected to the state House in 1976, said he plans to run for re-election in 2014.

Oshiro (D, Wahiawa-Whitmore-Poamoho) said he wants Demo­crats to get past what he described as a leadership logjam. Demo­crats in Say’s faction met privately at a luncheon Thursday and pledged their support to Oshiro, 53, after learning Say would step down.

Oshiro said the House’s 44 Demo­crats likely can organize without forming a coalition with Republicans.

"I think it sets a terrible precedent," he said of a Republican alliance. "I think they’re all fearful of what it means, in practical terms, on how they can pass legislation that serves the interest of the state of Hawaii. No. 2, there are people — again — who have concerns about Joe Souki coming back and serving as speaker."

Souki (D, Wai­hee-Wai­ehu-Wai­luku) said that he too would prefer to organize with fellow Demo­crats. He said he has offered Oshiro the chairmanship of the House Judiciary Committee if Oshiro joins his coalition.

But he also said he would honor his commitment to Republicans even if Demo­crats from Say’s faction defect. Republicans have been promised the vice chairmanships of the House Finance Committee, the House Economic Revitalization and Business Committee, and the House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee under Souki.

"It’s the House that elects the speaker," said Souki, 79. "Not the Demo­crats, not the Republicans — the whole House. We have sufficient votes at this time. I believe Marcus and the speaker (are) wasting their time. The speaker has stepped down. For Marcus’ own sake, he should step down, and I will provide him the judiciary chair. I still have it open for him."

Dissidents and Republicans said they would remain with Souki. Several noted that Republicans had supported Say during the last leadership fight two years ago.

Although Republicans were not publicly promised vice chairmanships or other posts, Say’s allies — including Oshiro, according to Republicans — had privately offered greater parity among staff and an extra slot on the House Finance Committee.

Say ultimately did not need the Republican votes to keep power, but the Republican support gave him leverage in talks with dissidents.

Rep. Scott Saiki (D, Downtown-Kakaako-McCully), one of the leading dissidents, said dissidents appreciate Say’s decision to step down.

"It’s clear that the majority of the House wanted a change." he said. "And we’re working towards that change. Rep. Souki is still our candidate for speaker."

Saiki said dissidents think Souki can unify the House and that some of the Republicans share progressive values.

"Some of the Republicans have a more progressive voting record than sitting Demo­cratic incumbents," he said. "I think that’s been made clear over the past few years. And Joe Souki has told us, over and over again, that he will not stand in the way of progressive legislation."

Rep. Ryan Yamane (D, Mili­lani-Wai­pio-Wai­kele), who has pledged to Say, said he hoped Say’s announcement would prompt a new discussion among House Demo­crats about who should lead their majority. A coalition that relies on minority Republicans to hold power, he said, could raise practical as well as policy issues in how the Demo­cratic caucus functions.

"We need to put the egos aside and move forward," he said.