How long do elections last?

I've just read Mike's Election Guide 2008 by Michael Moore. There's a lot I don't agree with, although his comments about excessive restrictions on Little League Baseball games so that children are only allowed to make a total of thirty-eight pitches are spot on.

But it's his comments about how long US elections last that made me want to laugh out loud. Noting the Presidential election officially began in 2006 he comments "Here in the US it lasts almost as long as the Ming Dynasty."

Now could he possibly have had in mind Ming Campbell famously trying to deflect leadership speculation by declaring "The last Ming dynasty lasted 267 years"? And then his own lasting less than two?