diff --git a/.github/workflows/release_python.yml b/.github/workflows/release_python.yml
index 77abd91c8..5e8386898 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release_python.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release_python.yml
@@ -100,7 +100,8 @@ jobs:
     needs: [sdist, wheels]
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     # Only publish to PyPi if the tag is not a pre-release OR if manually triggered
-    if: ${{ (startsWith(github.ref, 'refs/tags/') && !contains(github.ref, '-')) || github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch' }}
+    # Note, `workflow_run.head_branch` does not contain `refs/tags/` prefix, just the tag name, i.e. `v0.4.0` or `v0.4.0-rc.1`
+    if: ${{ !contains(github.event.workflow_run.head_branch, '-') || github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch' }}
 
     environment:
       name: pypi