Ferraro ran with Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale in the 1984 election; they lost to Ronald Reagan and his running mate, George H.W. Bush.
A resident of New York, Ferraro was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives during the years 1979-1985.
In a statement, her family said, “Her family said “Geraldine Anne Ferraro Zaccaro was widely known as a leader, a fighter for justice, and a tireless advocate for those without a voice. To us, she was a wife, mother, grandmother and aunt, a woman devoted to and deeply loved by her family. Her courage and generosity of spirit throughout her life waging battles big and small, public and personal, will never be forgotten and will be sorely missed.”
She is survived by her husband of 50 years, John A. Zaccaro; her three children and their spouses, Donna Zaccaro Ullman and Paul Ullman, John and Anne Rasmussen Zaccaro, and Laura Zaccaro Lee and Josh Lee; and her eight grandchildren.