Ionic polymer metal composite actuators (IPMCs), a new kind of smart material, have taken much attention as suitable candidates for the next generation actuators, micro-electromechanical systems, medical devices and micro air vehicles. In this paper, a new kind of IPMCs was developed by incorporating sulfonated poly(styrene-co-maleic anhydride) (SSMA) into the Nation structure to overcome some of the major drawbacks of traditional electro-active polymers. The results show that the ion exchange capacity and water uptake ratio of the SSMA-Nation membrane increased dramatically. Compared with general IPMCs, the maximum bending displacement and the maximum blocking force of the SSMA-reinforced IPMCs improved greatly: the 1 wt.% SSMA-IPMC exhibited the maximum bending displacement of 11 mm up to 1.4 times, while the 5 wt.% SSMA-IPMC exhibited the maximum blocking force of 26 mN up to 1.2 times.