diff --git a/.changeset/pre.json b/.changeset/pre.json
index 3bbf560..844fc1b 100644
--- a/.changeset/pre.json
+++ b/.changeset/pre.json
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@
     "bright-bears-burn",
     "calm-hairs-hunt",
     "clean-core-react-entries",
+    "early-clocks-sort",
     "fair-poets-train",
     "five-moons-return",
     "fix-default-variants-authoring-types",
@@ -22,6 +23,7 @@
     "olive-lions-rest",
     "quick-lamps-float",
     "quiet-cameras-smell",
-    "silly-seals-listen"
+    "silly-seals-listen",
+    "warm-crews-taste"
   ]
 }
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index dcb13d3..465f752 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,5 +1,21 @@
 # react-class-variants
 
+## 2.0.0-alpha.8
+
+### Patch Changes
+
+- 3c3fcc0: Harden release automation so npm dist-tag validation happens before publish and GitHub Actions can synchronize dist-tags with npm's OIDC exchange flow instead of relying on a long-lived repository token.
+
+  The release workflow now also validates GitHub release/changelog readiness before publish, recovers safely on reruns after partial publish success, and catches malformed `.changeset/*.md` files during normal changeset coverage checks instead of at release time.
+
+  It also waits through short npm registry propagation delays before deciding that a freshly published version or dist-tag update is still missing.
+
+  The post-publish reconciliation path is now simpler too: the workflow runs npm dist-tag sync and GitHub Release sync as separate steps and applies the final failure gate afterward.
+
+  Release tooling is also covered by ESLint now, which caught and prevents a latent dist-tag update bug in the non-no-op npm mutation path.
+
+- 7c72ce5: Fix package packing and publishing from a clean checkout so the tarball always includes the built `dist/` entrypoints even though `dist/` is gitignored. Packed-export validation now exercises that clean-checkout flow as a standalone check, and the local changeset gate now considers staged, unstaged, and untracked release-affecting files before it decides whether a changeset is required.
+
 ## 2.0.0-alpha.7
 
 ### Minor Changes
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index d4d467a..8798219 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "react-class-variants",
-  "version": "2.0.0-alpha.7",
+  "version": "2.0.0-alpha.8",
   "description": "Type-safe React variants API for dynamic CSS class composition",
   "private": false,
   "type": "module",