He was born and raised in the Houston area. He earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston-Downtown where he was named Student of the Year in Political Science. At Baylor University School of Law, he won the Best Respondent Brief Award in the Dawson & Sodd Moot Court Competition, was inducted into the Order of the Barristers; and was the President of Diversity in Law. Orlando Zambrano also served a clerkship in a Harris County Civil District Court and in a local district attorney’s office.