Angela Speir, the self-described "people's commissioner" on the Georgia Public Service Commission, will not run for re-election this fall, Speir said Thursday.

"I feel called to serve in a different way," Speir said. "I want to help people and I want to work in an organization where the goals are compatible with that."

She said she did not have another job lined up, but that she wanted to work for a nonprofit organization.

"I'm a little sad," she said. "My goofy self, I've got my Kleenex box with me all day. I look like Tammy Faye Baker at a Praise-a-Thon. This was not an easy decision."

Speir joined the commission five years ago, in a surprise upset of longtime commissioner Lauren "Bubba" McDonald.

She ran her statewide race with virtually no campaign money or name recognition.

On the PSC, she quickly established a reputation as a consumer advocate, frequently voting with commissioner Robert Baker and against commissioners Stan Wise, Doug Everett and, until last year, David Burgess on issues including utility price hikes, renewable energy and ethics.

Throughout her tenure, she expressed severe discomfort with the way business was conducted at the PSC, particularly the interaction between commissioners and utility and other lobbyists.

Speir was the force behind the PSC decision this year to limit interaction between commissioners and those with business before the commission.

She initiated deliberations over an "ex parte" rule intended to more closely align the commission's behavior to that of judges.

"She put a lot of time into that, and she met a lot of resistance," Baker said. "She's been a great asset, she's been an excellent public servant, she takes her job seriously. ... When she votes on an issue, she's doing it for a reason, it's not just because somebody asked her to."

John Sell, spokesman for Georgia Power Co., acknowledged that the utility has disagreed with Speir on some things but said "we respect her and her commitment to public service."

Speir said her frequent head-on clashes with commissioners Wise and Everett were not responsible for her decision.

"This has been a six-year tour of duty," she said. "I've made a decision that this is not where I want to be in the next chapter of my life."

—- Staff writer Kristi E. Swartz contributed to this article.