Four-term lawmaker Kim Boo-kyum of the ruling Democratic Party(DP) came short of fulfilling his political dream of overcoming regionalism in the conservative stronghold of Daegu.

Kim lost Wednesday's general election to the main opposition United Future Party’s(UFP) Joo Ho-young in Daegu's Suseong-A district, earning 39-point-two percent of votes against Joo's 59-point-eight percent.

Accepting his defeat, Kim said no farmer blames the field he is plowing, and acknowledged that he failed to read the minds of residents in coronavirus-stricken Daegu and the surrounding North Gyeongsang Province.

After serving three consecutive terms in Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province, Kim put his name in the hat for a seat in the main opposition's home turf of Daegu in the 2012 general elections, as part of his campaign to root out regional politics.

Kim lost that election and a Daegu mayoral race two years later, with around 40 percent of votes each time, before becoming the first liberal politician to be elected to represent Daegu in 45 years in 2016.