Adam Benford

Adam Benford was President of the United States in 2013. Benford was Leon's recruiter into the Division of Security Operations years prior and had a close friendship with him. Adam also had some degree of military experience.

Biography
"Bio-organic weapons are a global threat and we are partly to blame. We have to come clean and start working with the rest of the world... if we want to have any chance of fighting this."

- President Adam Benford to agent Leon Scott Kennedy

During the 1998 Raccoon City Destruction Incident, the President of the time and a Senate select committee agreed that the "Sterilization Operation", or "CODE: XX", should be implemented to eradicate all traces of the t-Virus. Unbeknownst to the general public, this decision was also made to cover-up the US federal government's awareness and complacency towards Umbrella's unethical research, along with the US military's bio-weapons deals with company personnel. At the time, Adam was a senior government official. It was also Adam who took interest in Raccoon police officer Leon S. Kennedy's extraordinary escape from the city, and offered him a new career as part of a "secret military agency" under the direct supervision of the US President.

As president, Adam Benford established the Field Operations Support in early 2011, placing Ingrid Hunnigan as the operations coordinator and having her report directly to him. Following this, he founded the Division of Security Operations to form a branch where agents would deal with threats of bioterrorism and report directly to him. The DSO was formed under the advice of his close friend, Leon, and the agent was subsequently made its first founding member.

Tall Oaks and death
"Adam... I'm sorry."

- Leon to President Benford, after being forced to shoot him

Sometime before June 2013, the now-President Benford confided in Leon his plans for a public announcement. He revealed his intention to reveal to the public the truth about the Raccoon City incident, explaining to Leon that Bio Organic Weapons are a threat and that the United States government was partly to blame for it becoming such. He admitted that he knew people would question his motives for revealing the truth and that it might hurt more than help. However, it was the only way for them to begin to work with the rest of the world and stand a chance of staving off bio-terrorism.

At some point, before President Benford could make his speech, the city of Tall Oaks came under attack from a C-Virus infection. It caused a vast majority of the population to mutate and turn into zombies, including the President. His friend, Leon, and agent Helena Harper were faced with the mutated Benford. No longer himself, the zombie lumbered towards Helena as Leon begged him to stop. As he came within reach, the former President pounced at Helena though was quickly put down with a single shot to the head from Leon before he could harm her. Understandably, his death was greatly mourned by Leon and he and Helena had to tell Ingrid Hunnigan what happened to the President only moments after the event.