Not many 22-year-olds find themselves on national television, much less as the face of a political issue in a presidential campaign ad.

But Hadley Duvall, an Owensboro native who recently graduated from Midway University with a degree in clinical psychology, has found herself in that exact position.

The former Biden-Harris campaign released a minute-long ad called “Options,” which featured Duvall doing her makeup, sharing her story and explaining her thought process when Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Duvall’s stepfather raped and sexually abused her from the age of 5 to 12, when she became pregnant.

Her stepfather later pleaded guilty to rape, sodomy and sexual abuse and is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence.

At the time of her positive pregnancy test, abortion was legal nationwide. While she eventually miscarried, Duvall said she planned to have an abortion.

“When Roe v. Wade was overturned, immediately I just thought about being 12, and first thing that was told to me when I saw that positive pregnancy test was, ‘you have options,’ ” Duvall says in the ad.

“And if Roe v. Wade would have been overturned sooner, I wouldn’t have heard that. And then it had me thinking that there’s someone who doesn’t get to hear that now.”

After the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe and Kentucky’s trigger ban took effect, Duvall posted her story on Facebook. The campaign to reelect Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear noticed.

Duvall said they asked her to help out with the campaign against Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron and set up a time to film in a four and a half-minute phone call about a year ago.

The rest is history.

The governor’s race and the Duvall ad

Some credit Beshear’s support of abortion exceptions, exemplified in the Duvall ad, as one of several reasons he clinched a second term.

Duvall said Beshear did the work.

“We always knew where he stood,” she said. “Daniel Cameron did not do that.”

During the Republican primary, Cameron avoided directly stating whether he supported abortion exceptions for rape or incest.

However, he defended Kentucky’s trigger ban in court as attorney general, and said he supported the current law, which includes an exception to protect the life of the mother.

In September, Cameron appeared to reverse course, stating on a radio show that he would sign a bill adding rape and incest exceptions if the legislature brought it to him.

Around the same time, he told Northern Kentucky Right to Life that he would sign legislation banning the use of Medicare and Medicaid funds for birth control pills.

During the 2024 General Assembly, Duvall was part of a failed effort to pass “Hadley’s Law,” which would have added limited exceptions to Kentucky’s near-ban on abortion.

The Biden-Harris ticket gets involved

For Duvall, it’s not about a Democrat or Republican dichotomy, but instead about “women’s rights.”

After hearing about Beshear’s success, the Biden-Harris campaign came calling. Duvall agreed to film another ad in her Kentucky home.

She later went on a talk show with Vice President Kamala Harris, who Duvall said connected with her story, which was similar to a story of one of Harris’ close friends.

Why Duvall, of all people? She thinks that as a “white, All-American girl” in a conservative state, people are able to see in her their daughters or sisters or other women they care about. By putting her face on the issue, people might understand that this can happen to them, Duvall said.

However, Duvall hopes her story can also empower minority women. She said she’s happy to take some of the hate in order to help them.

Right now, Duvall is taking a semester off before starting graduate school, where she plans to specialize in social work. She doesn’t know what her career path will be yet, but she wants to help youth in some way.

She spends a lot of time accepting invitations to talk at various events, but that’s not her whole future.

“I’m an advocate, but that’s not all I am,” she said.

Reliving trauma

Duvall grew up with a mother experiencing addiction. She was told she would have a hard time succeeding in life with an addiction in the family.

With her stepfather at home sexually abusing her, Duvall said she didn’t sleep much.

“I was raped, and then I had to go to cheer practice,” she said.

When she shared her story, Duvall said people told her she “could have turned out much worse.” It was “just another statistic” she felt she had to outrun.

“I know they mean well by that, but that’s not a good narrative,” she said.

Duvall said reliving the trauma might have been harder if she were younger. But she’s had time to process it. That being said, Duvall doesn’t think she will ever completely heal, since there is always be the possibility of uncovering a new memory.

When she was younger, Duvall couldn’t lash out. She couldn’t scream, cry or break things. She’s had to learn recently that vulnerability can be a strength.

She is no stranger to hate mail or comments, but there’s “a lot of love” too, Duvall said. People who knew her as a kid and strangers alike have expressed their support for her as she’s become an activist sharing her story.

“I’ve been through the worst of the worst,” Duvall said. “No hate comment or email is going to convince me to give up on myself.”