Zalman Aranne was born in the Ukraine, where he received a religious education. He later studied agriculture in Kharkov. As a young man, he was active in the Tze'irei Zion Party. In 1920, after the party split, he joined the Zionist Socialists and was a member of the secret Central Committee in the years 1924 -1925.

In 1926, Aranne emigrated to Mandate Palestine, where he joined the Ahdut HaAvoda Party. In 1930, after the establishment of Mapai, he was appointed their General Secretary.

In 1949, Aranne was elected member of the first Knesset. From 1953 to 1955, he served as Minister without Portfolio; from 1955 to 1960 and again from 1963 to 1969, he was Minister of Education and Culture. He introduced "Jewish Identity" and Jewish tradition into the curriculum and was responsible for the expansion of technical (vocational) education in Israel. In 1955, the Knesset accepted his reform program for the Israeli education system and his demands for secondary education diploma. As a government minister in 1967, he initially supported the majority position which sought a diplomatic solution to the closure of the Straits of Tiran, rather than a pre-emptive strike, which he also felt posed a great risk to the home front and the Israeli Air Force.