diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index 638061a..1d3384a 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -193,7 +193,6 @@ jobs:
       - smoke-unix
       - smoke-windows
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    environment: production
     timeout-minutes: 10
     permissions:
       contents: write
@@ -241,3 +240,27 @@ jobs:
           fi
 
           gh release create "${release_args[@]}"
+
+  publish:
+    name: Publish release
+    if: github.event_name == 'push'
+    needs: attest-and-draft
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    environment: production
+    timeout-minutes: 10
+    permissions:
+      contents: write
+    steps:
+      - name: Publish the reviewed draft release
+        shell: bash
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }}
+          # No checkout in this job; tell gh which repository to target.
+          GH_REPO: ${{ github.repository }}
+        run: |
+          publish_args=("${RELEASE_TAG}" --draft=false)
+          # A prerelease (tag contains a hyphen) must not be marked latest.
+          if [[ "${RELEASE_TAG}" != *-* ]]; then
+            publish_args+=(--latest)
+          fi
+          gh release edit "${publish_args[@]}"
diff --git a/docs/releasing.md b/docs/releasing.md
index 860896a..c8b4e39 100644
--- a/docs/releasing.md
+++ b/docs/releasing.md
@@ -69,18 +69,22 @@ binary. A release build must report the tag version without the leading `v`.
    without publishing them. Included file timestamps are normalized to the tagged commit for
    reproducible archives. The workflow uploads the six archives and `checksums.txt` as one
    short-lived workflow artifact. Native Linux, macOS, and Windows jobs verify and run archives
-   from that exact artifact. Only after all native smoke tests pass does the final job attest the
-   archives and create the draft GitHub release. No maintainer PAT or repository secret is used.
-   To diagnose or revalidate an existing tag without creating a release, manually dispatch the same
-   workflow; manual runs stop after the native smoke tests:
+   from that exact artifact. Only after all native smoke tests pass does the attest-and-draft job
+   attest the archives and create the draft GitHub release. The workflow then pauses at the
+   `production` environment gate, awaiting maintainer approval before the publish job runs. No
+   maintainer PAT or repository secret is used. To diagnose or revalidate an existing tag without
+   creating a release, manually dispatch the same workflow; manual runs stop after the native smoke
+   tests:
 
    ```bash
    gh workflow run release.yml --field tag=<cli-tag>
    ```
 
-5. Review the successful workflow, generated notes, checksums, attestations, and draft assets.
-6. Publish the draft. With Release Immutability enabled, publishing
-   locks the tag and assets.
+5. Review the drafted release on the Releases page — generated notes, checksums, attestations, and
+   the six archives.
+6. Approve the pending `production` deployment on the release run. The publish job then flips the
+   draft to public (a prerelease tag is never marked latest). With Release Immutability enabled,
+   publishing locks the tag and assets.
 
 Do not move or reuse a released tag. Fixes require a new version.