Derek Zeisman was born in Edmonton, Alberta on February 6, 1972, the elder of two children. He grew up in the Edmonton and Vancouver areas. While growing up, his father was a store manager with Woodward’s Department Stores Ltd.

Following his 1989 graduation from Seaquam Secondary School in North Delta, B.C., Zeisman attended Carleton University in Ottawa, where he obtained a Bachelor of Journalism degree (1993) and a Bachelor of Arts degree in History (1994). Zeisman also holds a Master of Public Administration degree from Queen's University in Kingston (1998), as well as a Certified International Trade Professional (CITP) designation from the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). In 1998, he was the recipient of an "If I Were Prime Minister" essay scholarship, sponsored by Magna International. Zeisman is fluent in English and French.

Zeisman has had a varied career in the field of public service. From 1993 to 1994, he served as general manager of the Rideau River Residence Association (RRRA), a not-for-profit undergraduate student activities and advocacy organization based at Carleton University. During his term as GM, he reversed a five-year string of annual deficits and cut the association's long-term debt by half, from $120,000 to $60,000.

In 1994, Zeisman was hired as the legislative assistant to Jim Gouk, the newly-elected Reform Party MP for what was then the federal riding of Kootenay West—Revelstoke, British Columbia. Over the next three years, he worked both in Gouk's Ottawa office and his Castlegar constituency office, taking on increasing duties as time progressed.

In 1997, Zeisman returned to university to obtain his Public Administration degree. During this period he served as Minister of Finance in the annual Queen's University Model Parliament, held on the floor of the House of Commons in Ottawa. He also served as Dispute Resolution Coordinator with the Queen’s University Residents Association.

Upon graduation in 1998, Zeisman was offered employment as a Foreign Service Officer (diplomat) with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT). While based at DFAIT headquarters in Ottawa, he served as a Canada-U.S. border policy analyst in the Department's United States bureau, and a public affairs officer in DFAIT's Western Europe bureau. During this period, he also served in a volunteer capacity on the executive, collective bargaining and communications committees of the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers (PAFSO), the union representing Canada's 1,200 diplomats.

In 2000, Zeisman was posted abroad for a two-year period to the Canadian Embassy in Algiers, Algeria. While posted to Algiers, he oversaw the Embassy's international development assistance (CIDA) program, and served as second-in-charge of its trade and commerce section. Life in this North African country was anything but ordinary, as Zeisman generally lived behind a barbed-wire fence 24/7, other than when he ventured out of the Embassy compound in an armoured vehicle, accompanied by armed guards. Nonetheless, he was fascinated by Algeria's rich cultural, ethnic, political and economic history, as well as the country's natural beauty and diverse climates.

During his posting, Zeisman assisted in the organization of trade missions to Algiers by a wide variety of high-ranking Canadian politicians, including former federal trade minister Pierre Pettigrew and former Quebec deputy premier Bernard Landry. Perhaps the most hectic period of Zeisman's time abroad came in April 2002, when former prime minister Jean Chrétien visited Algeria on the first leg of much-publicized pan-African Tour. The visit, though a tremendous organizational challenge, was a diplomatic success. In recognition of his assistance in the organization of these and other trade missions, Zeisman was the recipient of a 2001 Minister's Citation for Excellence in the Canadian Trade Service.

In late 2002, Zeisman returned to Canada, where he took up a new job in Vancouver as a trade commissioner at Industry Canada's International Trade Centre (ITC). In this position he worked closely with B.C.-based small and medium sized companies, assisting them in exporting their goods and services to countries around the world. During this period, he also served as an international relations instructor at Capilano College in North Vancouver.

In late 2004 Zeisman returned to the West Kootenay region, purchasing a home in the City of Trail and returning to MP Jim Gouk's office as a part-time constituency assistant. Zeisman also began to operate his own communications and research consulting business on a part-time basis.

In early July of 2005, Gouk announced his intention to retire as the Conservative Party MP for the riding of British Columbia Southern Interior. On July 10, Zeisman resigned as an aide to Gouk and became the first person to announce his candidacy for the Conservative nomination, stating that "I see this as an opportunity to contribute my knowledge, experience and energy to the Conservative cause. I do not take this lightly."

Zeisman would eventually be challenged for the nomination by Robert Zandee of Oliver and Stephen Hill of Rossland. The final balloting results were announced at the last of eight nomination meetings, held in Castlegar on Sept. 25. The voting results were Zeisman, 230 (54%); Zandee, 142 (33%); and Hill, 56 (13%). Following his victory, Zeisman said he was "delighted to have won the support of a clear majority of Conservative members. Even better, I'm pleased to say that my support was spread throughout the riding, rather than being concentrated in any one area of our sprawling constituency."

Former prime minister Paul Martin dissolved the House of Commons and called the 39th general election on Nov. 29, 2005. Election Day was scheduled for Jan. 23, 2006. On Dec. 20, while en route from Trail to Castlegar to meet with a campaign worker, Zeisman was seriously injured in a two-vehicle automobile accident. He suffered a shattered pelvis, broken left femur (upper leg), collapsed left lung, and damaged small intestine. The driver of the other vehicle suffered an injured left ankle.

As a result of his extensive injuries, Zeisman spent the duration of the election campaign at the Kootenay-Boundary Regional Hospital (KBRH) in Trail. Ultimately, he was in hospital for more than six weeks before returning home to continue his recuperation. Despite extensive physiotherapy, Zeisman was not able to walk unaided until August of 2006, eight months after the initial accident.

Highway and weather conditions were poor at the time of the accident, with icy roads, blowing snow and poor visibility. Nevertheless, following the 2006 election, the Castlegar detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) announced its intention to charge Zeisman with one count of dangerous driving causing bodily harm under the Criminal Code of Canada. He has pled not guilty to this charge, which will be heard in B.C. Provincial Court on Nov. 19-20, 2007.

In early January of 2006, while Zeisman was still recuperating in hospital from his auto accident, the news media revealed that he was facing six non-criminal charges under the federal Customs Act, dating back to alleged offences at the Pacific Border Crossing in Surrey, B.C. on July 4, 2004. The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) alleged that Zeisman had attempted to illegally import 112 bottles of alcohol into Canada, together with a 1989 Mercedes Benz (the latter having been purchased in California). The alleged offences, though unproven in a court of law, obviously proved very damaging to Zeisman's election campaign, which had already been badly hobbled by his car accident and subsequent hospitalization.

Following the revelation of the charges, Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper announced that if Zeisman were to be elected, he would not be permitted to sit with the Conservative Caucus until such time as all charges were successfully resolved. Nevertheless, Zeisman remained on the ballot as the Conservative candidate, in part due to time constraints (Election Day was fast approaching), and also as a result of a direct request made by Conservative National Campaign Chair Doug Finley that Zeisman not withdraw from the ballot or the campaign, but remain on board as the riding's Conservative candidate. Zeisman agreed to this request.

On Election Day, Jan. 23, 2006, the voting results in B.C. Southern Interior were as follows: