Fine Gael senator Maria Byrne has been elected as Leas Chathaoirleach of the Seanad in a walk-through vote.
However, a number of senators abstained from taking part in the vote, saying they were protesting how a secret ballot was not allowed to take place.
Senator Byrne and Independent senator Eileen Flynn were the two candidates put forward.
Senator Byrne was widely expected to win the vote due to the belief a public vote would mean the Government parties were likely to vote in her favour.
She duly did so, with Fine Gael senators Sean Kyne and Joe O'Reilly nominating her for the role, with senator O'Reilly saying she was "respected across the House" and a "distinguished" senator.
However, a number of Independent senators including Michael McDowell and Gerard Craughwell abstained on the vote, saying despite former taoiseach Leo Varadkar indicating in February 2018 that reforms allowing a secret ballot would take place in the future, no such changes have occurred.
Senator McDowell said the former taoiseach "broke his word" on the issue, with both his and senator Craughwell saying they will "not participate" in the vote as part of a protest.
Their views were echoed by Independent senators Ronan Mullen and Victor Boyhan, and Labour senator Laura Harmon, who said while they would participate they are in favour of a secret ballot.
When the vote took place, senator Byrne was elected in a walk-through vote, which involves senators publicly walking to either a "tá" or "níl" area to support or reject her nomination.
Independent senator Eileen Flynn was nominated by Independent senator Frances Black and Labour's Nessa Cosgrave, who respectively described her as "a beacon of hope and change" and "the first Traveller ever elected to the Seanad".
In her speech to the Seanad, senator Flynn said she was disappointed the vote has remained a public and not secret vote, saying she could not realistically ask Government senators to vote for her publicly instead of a Government senator, saying "where is the justice in that?"
Meanwhile, in the Dáil, Fianna Fáil TD John McGuinness has been elected to the position of Leas Cheann Comhairle.
He defeated Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh by 92 votes to 66.
