ALBANY - Senate Democratic leader Malcolm Smith said Wednesday any deal with three dissidents to secure his party's hold on the chamber majority is officially off.

Smith said he has the support of the Democratic Caucus and has ceased negotiations with the three, Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr. and Sen.-elect Pedro Espada Jr., both of the Bronx, and Sen. Carl Kruger of Brooklyn. Their support would give the party a 32-30 majority beginning Jan. 1 after decades of Republican control.

"We're prepared to wait if we have to to come into the majority," Smith said. He was flanked by senators Neil Breslin of Albany and Liz Krueger of Manhattan when he made the announcement.

Smith said the three renegades were motivated by "personal interests." He also said he wouldn't subject civil rights issues to negotiation, referring to a proposal backed by many Democrats to legalize gay marriage.

"That issue should never be a part of a negotiation," Smith said, and should be subject to the legislative process.

Diaz opposes gay marriage. All three dissidents sought influential positions in a Democratic majority, including a share of leadership duties for Espada and chairmanship of the powerful Finance Committee for Carl Kruger.

Diaz said Wednesday that Smith simply went back on a handshake deal reached last week after getting pressure over the weekend from other Democrats in the caucus. He said that both Smith and Paterson agreed at a meeting last Thursday to keep gay marriage legislation off the Senate floor. He said Smith started "chopping down" the deal and the three called it off Tuesday night.

Espada had appeared to persuade Smith to share power by splitting the positions of majority leader and president pro tem, the title of the constitutional head of the Senate. Smith would be president pro tem under the deal as described by Espada.

But Smith appointed his longtime No. 2, Sen. Jeffrey Klein of the Bronx, to a position as vice president pro tem, which would appear to put him in a position superior to Espada as majority leader.

"This was not about power," Diaz said. "It was that the Hispanic community would get something. There's nothing for us."

Smith said he was willing to talk with each individually, as he has with other Democratic senators. He also said he was willing to talk to any Republican senators who support the Democrats' reform and transparency agendas.

"They may decide to talk to the other side of the aisle," Smith said of the three. "My members are prepared for that."

Diaz said he planned to meet with Espada and Kruger to discuss what to do next.