[7] At the age of 22, Harvey received a political appointment to serve as a staffer in the White House Office during the Reagan administration.

He later became the program director at the Independence Institute, a libertarian Colorado think tank, and served as the district office manager for Congressman Joel Hefley.

In 2006, Harvey was elected to Senate District 30, defeating his Democratic opponent Shelly Tokerud with 62.7% of the vote.

[9] In 2011, Senator Harvey's major focus regarding legislation was working to maintain the integrity of the Colorado electoral process.

[12] These measures would have required proof of citizenship to vote in Colorado elections, and defined what type of identification qualified for election-related purposes.

Harvey's campaign struggled to gain momentum after the District Assembly, and he ultimately finished third in the Republican primary vote in August 2008,[13] with 14 percent of the total vote, finishing behind Wil Armstrong and Mike Coffman, the ultimate successor.