Nate Holden, L.A. Democrat With a Cameo in 2024 Presidential Race, Dies at 95

Nate Holden, a Democrat known for his bombast and populist politics, who served on the Los Angeles City Council for 16 years and had a cameo in the 2024 presidential race, when Donald J. Trump confused him with another Black California official, Willie Brown, died on Wednesday in Santa Monica, Calif. He was 95.

His death, in a hospital, was confirmed by his son Christopher, a former State Assembly member and Pasadena mayor.

Mr. Trump told reporters in August about taking a near-fatal helicopter trip with Mr. Brown, the former San Francisco mayor, during which he claimed Mr. Brown told him “terrible things” about Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.

Mr. Brown vehemently denied having been on such a flight. It turned out that Mr. Trump’s passenger very likely was Mr. Holden, who told reporters that around 1990 he and Mr. Trump had flown in a helicopter headed to Atlantic City, when mechanical problems forced an emergency landing.

In an interview with The New York Times, Mr. Holden said he had telephoned Mr. Brown when he heard Mr. Trump make the claim.

“I said, ‘Willie, you know what? That’s me!’” he recalled. “And I told him, ‘You’re a short Black guy, and I’m a tall Black guy — but we all look alike, right?’”