Brutus would, in my opinion, make a good leader but not a great leader. His problem is that he is too wishy-washy. He wants to have things both ways: for example, he helps to murder his best friend but still wants to be regarded as an honorable man. He knows Antony is a threat, but still wants to be the good guy who allows him to speak to the crowd. This desire to be two ways at once is his undoing.
Nevertheless, Brutus undoubtedly has traits that would make him a good leader. First, he loves Rome and put Rome's interests ahead of his own. He genuinely does want to do the right thing for his country. Unlike Cassius, he agrees to be part of the murder plot not for personal reasons, but because he does truly believe he is ridding Rome of a potential tyrant.
Further, Brutus is not just any senator, but a highly esteemed senator who had won the respect and friendship of Caesar. Cassius wants Brutus in the assassination plot because he knows what a high status person Brutus is and that he will lend credibility to the act.
Before the assassination, Brutus had established himself as a good leader who earned the trust of his peers.
Brutus has many admirable traits that would make him a good leader, namely, his selfless, honorable nature and his positive reputation among the Roman citizens. Cassius initially recruits Brutus to join the conspirators because he is aware of Brutus's popularity among the masses. Rome's populace respects Brutus, and they demonstrate their loyalty to Brutus by speaking highly of him before he speaks at Caesar's funeral.
Brutus is also a selfless individual who genuinely cares about the interests of the people. In act 3, scene 2, Brutus demonstrates his love for Rome by telling the crowd of citizens,
If then that friend demand why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer: not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more (Shakespeare, 3.2.19-22).
Brutus is also discerning and takes his time making important decisions. Before joining the conspirators, Brutus carefully weighs the reasons why he believes Julius Caesar should die. He is not portrayed as an impulsive man and is also honorable. Unlike Cassius, Brutus refuses to use Caesar's death for personal gain and is deeply hurt when he discovers that Cassius has been selling political offices. Overall, Brutus would make a good leader because he is discerning, loyal, popular, and honorable.
The most prominent leadership quality in Brutus is his fierce and selfless loyalty to his country. He is more loyal to the republic of Rome than to Caesar. It is for the good of Rome that he will justify his participation in the plot to assassinate Caesar. He will strike down Rome's enemies, which he perceives to be Caesar's ambitions. After they kill Caesar, he comforts those who witnessed the scene by telling them not to be afraid, because "Ambition's debt is paid" (Act III, scene i, lines 83-84). Brutus does not hunger for power and is not clouded by ambition; he seeks to serve his country.
Brutus is also a man of noble character and has gained the respect of Rome and its leaders, so much so that Cassius and the other conspirators feel they need his support and his reputation on their side to gain the support of the people.
He is a man who commits to his beliefs and owns his actions. During the assassination scene, he is the last to stab Caesar. In Act III, scene ii, he defends himself to the public by saying that he killed Caesar because he loved Rome more. Caesar would have made them all slaves. Therefore, Brutus has judged the situation and sentenced Caesar to death.
Even upon Brutus's defeat and death, Antony, the one who defeated the conspirators, praises him as "the noblest Roman of them all" (Act V, scene v, line 68).
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