Ruth Jean Gordon Hinerfeld, a civic organization leader who established a precedent

for qualifying third party candidates to participate in national presidential debates, died

on May 6, 2026.

Ms. Hinerfeld was born on September 18, 1930, in Boston, MA, the daughter of Morris

and Anna (Shoolman) Gordon. She was raised in Milton, MA, in a home that abutted

her grandparents’ dairy farm.

She earned her undergraduate degree in sociology at Vassar College in 1951 and was

elected to Phi Beta Kappa. In 1952, she earned a certificate from the Harvard-Radcliffe

program in business administration. At a school-sponsored dance she met Norman

Hinerfeld, a student at Harvard Business School. They married on Christmas Day in

1952 and remained each other’s fiercest champions over the next 70 years.

Ms. Hinerfeld first became active in the League of Women Voters (LWV) in the early

1950s in Indianapolis, IN, where her husband served as an Army lieutenant. She

continued volunteering with the LWV as they posted in different states, eventually

settling in the Village of Mamaroneck, NY, in 1967. She served as the LWV’s observer

to the United Nations, chaired the League’s International Relations Committee, served

as director of the Overseas Education Fund and became president of the national

organization in 1978.

In 1980 she was thrust begrudgingly into the national spotlight as the League grappled

with the question of allowing a third-party candidate to participate in the presidential

debates.

On behalf of the LWV, she set a threshold of 15% in national polls to determine whether

a candidate could participate in a nationally televised presidential debate. John

Anderson qualified to participate in the first presidential debate in 1980, to the

consternation of President Carter, who declined to participate in the first debate. Said

Ms. Hinerfeld at the time, “We are not doing this to make the candidates happy.” Her

colleagues were impressed by how she calmly navigated the inherent chaos of running

debates. James Baker, Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan, described

her as “fair, open, and gracious.”

President Gerald Ford appointed Ms. Hinerfeld to his Advisory Commission for Trade

Relations. President Jimmy Carter reappointed her for an additional term.

Ms. Hinerfeld subsequently served on the boards of the Overseas Development

Council, the Municipal League, Common Cause, and the US Committee for UNICEF,

where she served as vice chair. She was also a member of the Council on Foreign

Relations, a trustee for the Institution of International Education, and the first chair of the

Westchester County Fair Campaign Practices Committee. One of her greatest joys,

however, was her multi-decade stint serving as a docent at the Bronx Zoo.

She was predeceased by her beloved, Norman Hinerfeld, and her brother, Marvin

Gordon.

Ms. Hinerfeld is survived by her daughter, Lee Ann Hinerfeld, her sons, Thomas

Benjamin (Grainne Ward), and Joshua Gordon (Andrea Binder), and two grandchildren,

Olivia and Samuel.

Ms. Hinerfeld told a reporter in 1980 that she believed that her civic engagement was

beneficial to her children. “The boys think, as does my daughter, there aren’t men’s jobs

and women’s jobs.”

A memorial for Ms. Hinerfeld will take place at Beach Point Club in Mamaroneck, NY, in

December 2026.

In lieu of flowers, Ms. Hinerfeld’s family requests that you consider making a memorial

contribution to the League of Women Voters, the Wildlife Society, or the US Committee

for UNICEF.