He endorsed Obama.
With two weeks remaining in the historic 2008 presidential race, Colin Powell delivered a surprise announcement: He endorsed Democratic candidate Barack Obama and offered words of regret to his old friend, John McCain.
"I think we need a generational change," said Powell, the former secretary of state, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and retired Army general.
At the time, it was a bombshell that neither Obama nor McCain a fellow Republican was expecting.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/18/politics/barack-obama-colin-powell-2008/index.html