The vote to fill deceased Councillor Anthony Flynn's seat has been deferred.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the Dublin City Council party leaders today, and will be formalised at tonight's full meeting of the Council.
The ex-CEO of the Inner City Helping Homeless charity, who died in August, was being investigated by the gardai over sexual abuse allegations.
The vote was expected to take this evening, but it will now be deferred and put back on the agenda at a later date.
The motion to replace Mr Flynn's seat was put forward by a group of Independent Councillors - but it caused controversy and disquiet.
The grouping proposed Geraldine Molloy, a volunteer with ICHH over a number of years, to fill Mr Flynn's seat.
It is understood Cllr Cieran Perry said Ms Molloy was being nominated “by the Flynn family” and the independent group in a message to all Councillors.
Earlier today, Social Democrat Councillor Catherine Stocker wrote in a post on social media that her group will be "vigorously opposing" the motion.
She wrote: "In the context of very serious and credible allegations and ongoing investigations into both Anthony Flynn and ICHH we feel that it would be deeply inappropriate for the council to accept the nomination of a candidate so closely linked to both."
"To do so, would be to dismiss the very real responsibility we have to the victims. Many groups on DCC believe that we should allow the Independent grouping to make this call."
Mr Flynn did not nominate a successor and Ms Stocker wrote that it is now up to the full Council to decide who should fill the seat.
She said: "The reality is that in the absence of a nominee put forward by Anthony Flynn himself prior to his death it is the responsibility of the full council to agree a nomination and, that being so, it must be one we can stand over.
"We have fought over the past week to have this decision deferred for proper consideration and potential additional nominations but it would now seem that the majority of groupings on the council are prepared to endorse the Independent group’s candidate."
She added: "We will continue to seek a deferral but should we fail to achieve it, we will be opposing the candidate."
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