How was Mussolini able to gain power in Italy? He played to the prejudices of the Italians. He fought off Hitler's attempt to annex Italy. He led a coup to take over a weakened government. He proposed new ideas to solve the economic crisis.

Benito Mussolini was able to gain power in Italy by leading a coup to take over a weakened government. After World War I, Italy was in a state of political and economic turmoil. Mussolini capitalized on this instability and used it as a platform to rise to power. He led the National Fascist Party and used propaganda and violence to suppress opposition and gain control. The other options provided are not accurate descriptions of how Mussolini gained power. He did not fight off Hitler's attempt to annex Italy, as Hitler was not in power at the time Mussolini rose to power. While Mussolini did play to the prejudices of the Italians and proposed new ideas to solve the economic crisis, these were not the primary reasons for his rise to power. The most accurate answer is that he led a coup to take over a weakened government.