A longtime Philadelphia judge withdrew his name from consideration for the state Supreme Court after an email he sent was made public and was viewed by many as racially insensitive.

According to Philly.com, Centre County judge Thomas K. Kistler, 57, made his announcement on Monday, despite once having the strong backing of the GOP-controlled Senate and the strategic endorsement of newly elected Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf.

Things began to unravel for Kistler earlier this month after several media outlets reported he sent an email in December of 2013, titled "Merry Christmas From the Johnsons," in which he depicted a black couple sharing a jailhouse visit with the man wearing an orange jump suit and sitting behind a glass window. The subject line read "best Christmas card ever."

In the statement he released on Monday confirming his withdrawal, Kistler made no mention of the email or the controversy it has sparked. He previously admitted to forwarding the email but insisted he meant no ill will in doing so.

Still, critics maintained the email raised serious questions about Kistler's qualifications to sit on the bench of the state's highest court. Senate Republicans canceled a confirmation hearing for Wolf's second nominee, Democrat Ken Gormley, a Law School professor.

"I was trying to give the conventional way you do things in something like this -- you know, a Republican and a Democrat -- and try to make that work," Wolf said. "And I think I learned a lesson: Do my own vetting and make sure I'm doing the right thing as far as I can tell -- not try to make the deals."

In his statement, Kistler also specifically thanked the Pennsylvania governor and Sens. Jake Corman, R-Centre, and Jay Costa, D-Allegheny, "for their confidence in my ability to serve" on the court. He later added, "My primary concern has to remain the full and proper functioning of the Centre County court. Had the current circumstances been known in November, I would have not offered my name for nomination."