Carl Zehr was born in Baden, Ontario and is a graduate of Rockway Mennonite Collegiate in Kitchener. He has served as a member of the board of numerous Kitchener area organizations: the Kitchener-Wilmot Hydro Board, the University of Waterloo, Centre in the Square, and Kitchener Housing Inc. Zehr was the Ontario Liberal Party candidate in Kitchener-Wilmot in the 1990 provincial election, but came in second to New Democrat Mike Cooper. He was elected mayor of Kitchener in 1997 serving until 2014. . He previously served as a city councillor from 1985 to 1994. He is the namesake of Carl Zehr Square, a public square at Kitchener City Hall.