Ian Paisley to quit as leader of N. Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party

DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - Ian Paisley, the Protestant evangelist who leads Northern Ireland's power-sharing administration, said Tuesday he is quitting as the leader of his Democratic Unionist Party.

Paisley said he made the decision to leave in May after mounting pressure from within his party in recent weeks to stand aside.

Paisley, 81, has dominated Northern Ireland political life for four turbulent decades and his departure from the political front line marks the end of an era.

He said he will step down after an investment conference in Belfast organized by the power-sharing executive.

"I came to this decision a few weeks ago when I was thinking very much about the conference and what was going to come after the conference," Paisley said.

"I thought that it is a marker, a very big marker and it would be a very appropriate time for me to bow out."

Although he will resign as Northern Ireland's first minister, he said he plans to remain a member of British Parliament and a Northern Ireland Assembly member.

His leadership was widely seen as having been undermined when his son, Ian Paisley Jr., was forced to resign last month from the coalition amid allegations of ethical failures.